Caerulean
by CeruleanSorbeltz
Summary: The road to Hell is paved with good intentions; nobody knows this better than me. But who am I? Well, imagine your average self-insert, then remove any foreknowledge of the universe you've been inserted to. You're going to befriend the first people to help you once you're there, right? Well, in my case, that meant Cinder...
1. Prologue: By Our Own Actions

**Prologue**

 **By Our Own Actions**

 _ **Recommended BGM:**_

 ** _watch?v=1hdNDzl-n8E_**

* * *

 ** _I want to be strong._**

 _Click._

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There are three types of people in the world. Most are the first type: Sheep. Sheep are kind, gentle, productive creatures who, generally, only manage to cause harm by accident. They are peaceful by nature... But are incapable of defending the peace. Still, despite such a seemingly negative portrayal, the second type of people tended to view them with both fondness and affection.

 _Click._

 _Click._

 _Click._

The Woman in Red shared that view. They were, after all, society's backbone, gifted with a wide gamut of talents. Without them, the second type, Sheepdogs, would have no reason to exist. For the Sheepdog, gifted with the gift of aggression, seeks to use that gift, taking on the roles of police, firemen, soldiers and Hunters. Whichever path they choose to specialize in, their purpose is unified, their goal, one: to serve and protect.

 _Click._

 _Click._

 _Click._

The Woman in Red was _not_ a Sheepdog. For while she was indeed gifted with aggression, she had long since lost the desire to protect. No, she had found herself a different aspiration, one more suited to her talents... And the Wolf would not be denied. The Wolves of society were the liars, thieves, and murderers... And to achieve her goals, the Woman in Red was willing to resort to all three.

 _Click._

 _Click._

 _Click._

Perhaps it was the way her amber eyes, peeking out from behind a glittering black mask, seemed to almost glow, giving them the appearance of lit embers to illuminate her predatory smirk. Or perhaps it was her poise, the way that her legs, long, bare, and immaculately smooth, slowly, sensually sashayed down the alley, her heels tapping out a steady rhythm against the stone. In the end, it mattered not, for the effect was the same: the Sheepdogs before her had been reduced to mere Sheep in her presence... And it would be a lie to say that she wasn't enjoying the moment.

 _Click._

The Woman in Red crinkled her eyes in pleasure as her prey finally backed into a wall, having reached a dead end. The Sheep were boxed in, now, with buildings to their sides and the Wolf directly ahead. The only way to escape was through her...

In other words, they wouldn't. The first of their number had discovered that the hard way.

"You can tell me what I wish to know... Or Vale can strike _all_ of Team Carmine from the rolls, as opposed to merely half."

 _Thud._

Two of the alley's three living occupants flinched as something heavy impacted the ground just to their left. They turned fearful gazes towards it... And gave off various noises of despair, causing the woman in red to grin viciously.

 ** _I want to be feared._**

The third member of their team now lay in a heap at their feet... Or rather, his corpse did. Once a handsome man, the desiccated husk before them was only recognizable as Rhode A. Mint by the presence of his weapon, a kusarigama... Wrapped around his throat, where he'd been hanging from a fire escape. With Madge Enna, Rhode's Partner, _also_ a corpse back near the mouth of the alley, that left only the C and the N of team CRMN.

They were as good as dead.

"I'm waiting."

The Woman's voice, previously velvety and saccharine, took on just the faintest note of steel as she stared the two surviving members of CRMN down. Her twin blades, wickedly curved, bearing multiple edges, and coated in blood, drawn and held menacingly at her sides.

"You... You bitch! We'll never tell!"

"Make no mistake, Nathaniel, I am fully prepared to kill you both and find someone else who will."

"Then you'd better fecking get on with it, you bloody bitch!"

"Hmmph. She can _try._ "

"Real shit, Cinna. I'm not about to just roll over and die."

"Good. Because I absolutely _refuse_ to die before we bring this bitch down."

"You're going to be disappointed."

The Woman eyed her opponents coldly. While it was amusing that they had finally rediscovered their spines and were attempting to be Sheepdogs again, it also heralded the death of her attempts to obtain the information she sought. Which left her only one course of action.

"So be it."

The battle began with a sudden flash of a bright red light, bright enough to momentarily blind The Woman. But she hardly needed her eyes to see what they would do next, and thus, she was easily able to defend herself against the opening flurry of attacks, her ears and her instincts aiding her where her eyes could not.

Still blind, and still blocking and weaving amidst the flurry of steel, The Woman grinned, and the patterned sleeves of her dress began to glow.

"What the fe-"

"Nat, MOVE!"

The foulmouthed butcher obliged his teammate and leapt back... Not a moment too soon, as he just barely avoided getting lashed by the whip that had suddenly been conjured, consisting completely of glowing orange shards. Fire Dust.

"A witch..."

The 'witch' rolled her eyes, and just barely repressed the urge to snort as her opponents regrouped. She herself was content to let them, a sly smirk on her features as the Dust returned to her sleeves, where it continued to glow.

"I prefer the term 'sorceress,' thank you. Though I'm surprised that a Huntsman would use such terms, knowing that anybody with a sufficient grasp of their Aura could utilize Dust in such a fashion." It went unsaid that Nathaniel 'Nat' Tal must therefore not have much control over his Aura. But what the sorceress was counting on was him not having much control over his _temper_ , and she ended up being proven correct when the man rushed her not a moment later.

"Raaaaaahhh-ugh!"

 ** _I want to be powerful._**

The Woman grinned evilly; it had been child's play to duck under the butcher's wild swing and shove a sword clean through his gut. The man's cleavers clattered to the ground... And he followed an instant later as The Woman dropped him, not even bothering to remove her sword first.

"You can still walk away from this, Cinna. All you need to do is tell me where the Fall Maiden is. Or even just who she is. Are you truly prepared to die, simply to keep such a small piece of information from me?"

"The only one of us who will be dying tonight is you."

The Woman opened her mouth, a witty retort on her lips... Only to throw herself desperately to the side mere milliseconds before a hatchet descended through the space her head had just been occupying.

"God dammit, Cinna, you just _had_ to go for the one liner!"

"That was a good line and you know it!"

"Dude, so not the time!"

"It's always a good time for a one liner! You, for example, could've said something like: 'You forgot about me, bitch!'"

"Will you shut up already? Rhode and Nate are _dead_ , in case you hadn't quite processed that!"

The Woman sighed in exasperation; in addition to being correct about the timing of Cinna Barr's one liner, Madge Enna had just managed to _come back from the fucking dead!_ She had _literally_ been in _five_ different pieces just a few minutes ago! A quick glance over to that end of the alley-

"Regeneration..."

Yes. That was the only explanation. Madge's Semblance must somehow involve the regeneration of lost or damaged body parts. It was the only explanation the red woman could come up with for how three of the five pieces of Madge were still heaped in a pile on the other end of the alley, yet still managed to stand in front of her, whole and unblemished, aside from her clothes being missing from the regenerated parts and bloodsoaked where they remained. But to regrow nearly her whole body, and so quickly...

Her face slowly morphed from frustration into a devious grin.

"You must have used up most of your Aura on that trick, Madge. Let's see if you can do that again. Unless, of course, you'd like to talk about the subject Cinna here has been so recalcitrant to broach?"

"Not sure what that word means, but I do know that the only words about Amber you'll be hearing out of me are the following: Fuck you! She _was_ here, but she'll be long gone by now."

"Goddammit Madge."

"What?"

"You just told her about the Maiden!"

"Wha- Oh. _Shit..._ "

"And _I'm_ the one who doesn't know when to keep his mouth shut..."

"Ahem."

While Cinna and Madge had been busy bickering, the woman in red had taken the opportunity to step around them and retrieve her discarded weapon from Nat Thal's corpse. A corpse that was quickly immolated, just in case Madge Enna happened to be capable of reanimating other's corpses as well. Unlikely, based on the apparent method, but it never hurt to be certain. Especially after she'd already been surprised once; that was already one time too many. Of course, she didn't incinerate the body just for her own peace of mind. Oh, no. For in denying the enemy a possible resource, she had also eliminated every last trace of their friend.

"Shall we continue?"

It had the desired effect.

A widening of the eyes and parted mouths were the only outward reactions the surviving members of Team CRMN gave... But fear makes the Wolf grow bigger, and even the slightest trace of it was enough for The Woman in Red. Sadistic grin in place, she stepped forward to begin the slaughter...

A sudden glow off to the side interupted her, capturing the attention of all three. The Woman turned her head to look... And was surprised to see a kid, no older than perhaps 16, stumble out of a portal and directly into the sharp point at the tip of one of Madge Enna's axes. Both seemed to be surprised at the sudden turn of events... But the kid recovered quick, his visage quickly turning to a snarl before he grabbed the haft of the axe he'd been impaled on and smashed his forehead into Enna's nose, breaking it with a resounding crack. The axe slipped from Madge's grasp as she reeled back with a curse, before bumping into Cinna. Who himself had been forced to stand his ground and block an attack from The Woman or else allow Madge to be cut in half. He himself had suffered for it, however, as his weapon, a dual bladed sword, was incapable of blocking both attacks, having come from different angles. To save Madge, Cinna had allowed one of the woman's blades to glance off of his shoulder, doing no lasting damage but in return consuming a decent chunk of his Aura.

"Ow! C'mon, kid, tha woth an abbiden-"

"We don't have time for this, Madge! Kid! You get a freebie because Madge stabbed you, but if you attack us we will _not_ be able to show you mercy! So stand down!"

The Woman smirked. She'd seen the look in the kid's oddly colored eyes; he was pissed off, and wounded to boot, with his perceived assailant directly in front of him. Add in that he'd been stabbed just moments after arriving in an unexpected situation and he was probably equal parts confused and terrified as well. All perfectly valid reasons to trigger man's fight or flight instinct, and if the way he'd reacted at the moment of his stabbing was any indication, The Woman had a pretty good idea of how this was going to go.

He chose to fight.

With a wordless cry, he rushed forward, swinging the axe in a hard downwards motion... Which Madge was forced to block with her own axe, for the same reason Cinna had blocked The Woman. But what she hadn't accounted for was her own lack of strength, sapped, as The Woman had deduced, by regenerating most of her body in one go. And, as The Woman noted, it had apparently been sapped enough that she couldn't even fend off a wounded, Auraless civilian.

This battle was hers. But first, she would need to deal with her own opponent. Who had suddenly become two. The Woman raised an unseen brow; she had not expected that. But it was no matter; this would be over quickly.

It would not be without effort, however, for even with two weapons in hand, she now had to contend with what amounted to two opponents, both of whom used two weapons that relied on agility to wield effectively. And agility Cinna Barr had, as each attempted strike with one blade instantly transitioned into a spinning slash with the other, keeping him always moving... And with there being two of him, he was able to time it so that even while he was spinning away, the clone was spinning towards her.

All that meant was that it was time to remind him that she was a mage.

The Woman's sleeves began to glow, and this time her lash struck true, striking and penetrating the Aura of one the two Cinna's to leave a bloody furrow across his chest. A split second later, the other one found himself missing his hands, a result of her blades slicing them off at the wrists; his scream of pain was cut off in the same instant his head was. After that, it was easy work to finish off the remaining Cinna. But as the man's body hit the ground, another pained scream was heard, causing The Woman to turn towards the other battle.

"Interesting..." The Woman murmured upon bearing witness to the battle. Despite being wounded and apparently without Aura, the kid had seemingly managed to get a few good knocks in on his opponent. Who, the Woman reminded herself, was a trained Huntress, albeit drained of Aura herself. However, he himself had received the worst of the encounter, having been the one who cried out when Madge managed to cleave into his side with her remaining hatchet.

That didn't mean it was over.

In an astounding repeat of his earlier feat, the kid- or rather, the young man, as The Woman found herself forced to acknowledge out of respect- grabbed the wrist holding the axe before Madge could remove it, a slight jerk being the only evidence that she had even tried. And she had, quickly too... Which made it all the more impressive that the young man had managed to lock her down. Something he immediately took advantage of by using his own captured axe to take her arm off at the shoulder.

The scream that tore itself from the disarmed woman could have woken the dead. Idly, the Woman marveled at that, figuring that with a Semblance like hers, she'd be used to such agony... No matter. The fight had drawn out long enough, The Woman decided, and that last scream in particular would have defied all efforts to avoid further attention. It was time to end it.

A sudden lunge and a quick slash later, and Madge joined the rest of Team CRMN in death, a result of the red smile opened on her throat. Still, her earlier regeneration left The Woman unwilling to take the chance that Madge had somehow survived that, so with only a little bit of concentration, she willed the Dust from her sleeves once more, this time as a cloud of particles to shroud the dead woman's body. A body that was set alight as soon as the shroud settled into place.

"Holy shit..."

The Woman smirked as she turned her gaze on the young man. He had nothing to fear from her... But he didn't know that, and it was evident in his tone. The Woman reveled in it.

 _ **Strength. Fear. Power.**_

Three little words to describe the entirety of her desires. And at the moment, she was high on all three.

"St- Stay back!" The young man stammered out as he made to brandish the axe he had claimed, only to collapse as the accumulated blood loss finally sent him into shock.

"Chup... I... I don't want to die..."

The Woman frowned at the sudden change in behavior. To see one who had demonstrated such desperate strength, turn so craven when faced with their end... She liked it little. But at the same time, she could understand that sort of reaction, even if she didn't encourage it herself. So, wishing to see some more of the strength the young man had demonstrated during the fight, she chose to distract him. "What _do_ you want?"

"I want... I want to be strong. Strong enough to make a difference. Strong enough to create a world in which monsters don't exist..."

And with that answer, The Woman knew she was right about him; this one had potential. Granted, it would take some work to twist his beliefs to the point he would willingly join her in her goals... But the potential outcome would be worth the trouble. And The Woman _did_ enjoy a challenge. "Then close your eyes, and when next you open them, you'll be able to take the first step towards doing so."

"I'm not... I'm not an idiot. I'm... dying. How-"

"What if I told you I might have a way for you to survive?"

"Normally, I'd say you're... That... Crazy. But I also just watched you roast someone with magic, so instead, I'd ask why; why bother? You seem like the type that only cares about people she might have a use for. What use could you possibly have for a guy like me?"

The Woman allowed herself to grin. Strong, intelligent, _and_ perceptive? She was beginning to actually _like_ the guy.

"Only what you already want to do. Become strong. Strong enough to make a difference. Strong enough to create a world in which monsters like... Them, cannot exist. I intend to create such a world... But I will need help."

A long pause ensued, the young man just staring at her. For a moment, The Woman worried that he was about to fade away... But the shrewdness of the gaze reassured her of the man's continued survival, albeit at the cost of her patience.

"Well?"

"You're lying, but it's not as if I've got much choice at this point, so I'll do it... But whatever you're going to try, you'd better be quick; I don't think I have too much longer..."

On the one hand, she was dissatisfied that he'd seen through her so easily. But on the other, she supposed that it was her own fault, for attempting that sort of line so soon after he had witnessed her murder two people. But the fact that he hadn't fallen for it meant that he wasn't naive; she could work with that. "Very well. This won't take long." Kneeling, The Woman placed a hand on the man's shoulder, and intoned:

 ** _'For it is our actions alone which grant us immortality. Through our own efforts, we become paragons of ambition and control. Infinite in potential and unbound by death, I release your soul, and by my power enable thee."_**

And as she opened her eyes, a deep blue glow enveloped the man's body, shining bright for a long moment before dulling down to a faint hue. But the man's eyes remained bright, not quite glowing but clearly brighter than they had been before.

"Woah..." The man breathed out in a tone of wonder, causing The Woman to smile smugly.

"You're going to be okay; it took my action to kick start, but the power that protects you now is your own. And it would seem you have been gifted with quite a bit of it. But you need to rest now in order for it to heal you properly." The Woman paused, a thought coming to her. "However, before you do... What is your name?"

"My name... My name is..."

* * *

 ** _A/N: Please bear with me for the next while or so, I wrote this prologue AFTER I had already gotten 8 months and 20ish chapters in! Currently reworking everything before the current chapter, I hope to be done and moving forwards again before Volume Four is released. But the story won't be changing much, just some of the narrative, so please read on! And don't forget to review!_**

 ** _-CeruleanSorbeltz_**


	2. Preface

_Heroes, paragons of might and virtue risen above the flock. Mankind has become quite taken with recounting their tales, often forgetting that there are two sides to every story. Heroes, fighting on behalf of the people, are brave, wise, and resourceful. But so too are the villains. Villains, who by definition are fodder for the heroic legends. Thus heroes and villains clash, warring in arms and ideologies... But in the end, it is the victor who writes history. So you may take a stand... Cling to your ideals, but take heed... A war is coming to Vale. And the time to choose a side... Is now._

"...But perhaps things are not always so simple, so... cut and dry. Sometimes, extraordinary circumstances call for extraordinary courses of action... Aw, who am I kidding. That may have been my reasoning when I first joined with Cinder, and found out about her plan, but that was so long ago now... I'm not sure if that's still true... What am I talking about, you ask? Well, it's quite the story; I make no promises as to whether or not you'll believe all of it. But, if you're still interested in hearing it, then please sit, make yourself comfortable. We're definitely going to be here for a while... You're sure? Very well, then. This... Is how it all began..."


	3. Chapter 1: Immersion Part 1

_Heroes: paragons of might and virtue risen above the flock. Mankind has become quite taken with recounting their tales, often forgetting that there are two sides to every story. Heroes, fighting on behalf of the people, are brave, wise, and resourceful, but so too are the villains. Villains who, by nature of the genre, are oft portrayed as mere fodder for the heroic legends. But the best of us are so much more than that, and even when we lose, the history books will remember that we brought mankind to their knees. But this world has never had to face a villain quite like me. So you may take a stand, cling to your ideals, take comfort in the precedents set forth by history. But take heed: A war is coming to Remnant, and there will be no escaping it._

* * *

 **Volume 1**

 **Chapter 1**

 **Immersion**

 **Part 1**

 _It was a Saturday evening, during the winter, years ago, back when the only thing I truly had to worry about was my job. And it was not a very exciting one either; mixing different color inks together for a printing house tends to lose its' luster in a very short period of time. But it paid the bills, and promised advancement so long as I performed, so I stuck with it, even to the point of allowing myself to be moved to cold and distant lands. Though to be fair, after a single winter of living in Atlas, I can't truly complain about this place having been cold. You see, I was born and raised in a desert region that was closer to the planet's equator than it was to the polar regions; the place I am speaking of was several hundreds of miles to the North of that. It was cold enough that it snowed for about 4-5 months of the year, and heavily enough that there was usually at least a couple inches of it on the ground._

 _Why is this important?_

 _Imagine, for a moment, that you've never even seen snow in person before, much less had to drive in it. Now imagine that you have ten minutes to get to work, and you're about ten minutes away... In clear weather. But the weather isn't clear; while it's only been snowing for the last several minutes or snow, all it takes is one look outside and you can tell it's going to be a blizzard the likes of which even life-long citizens of Atlas can't fully shrug off. Visibility is already shit, the roads are gradually getting impassible... And you're still stuck outside in this, driving a little two-door front-wheel-drive with no chains on the tires. The only options are to either park, call for rescue, and wait it out... Or risk driving the rest of the way to work where you'll have food, warmth, and companionship. You can see why I did what I did, right?_

 _I regretted it only a few minutes later when my car went right over the edge of the hill. Yeah, I was that stupid. By all rights I should be dead, my frozen corpse splattered at the bottom of a ditch somewhere, right? Well, obviously I'm not. And again, I'm not expecting you to believe any of this, but at least it'll be one helluva story... and it's not like we've got much else to do here. So... Here I go._

* * *

 **Day 1**

Warmth. That was the most prominent thing the man could feel upon waking up... And that in and of itself convinced him that he couldn't still be alive. Afterall, he had presumably just driven himself off the side of a cliff in the middle of the worst blizzard his home country had ever seen. If he was still alive, he should have been cold... And in pain. Lots and lots of pain, seeing as he drove a relatively new car, with a mostly plastic frame, rather than an older metal-framed one; it would have crumbled upon impact, and if he had survived, he most certainly would have had something impaled through him or crushing him or... _something_ , with cold air blowing in from all the holes in the car. Instead, he was warm and lying on something soft...

 _A bed?_

Warily, wearily, and just the least bit blearily, the man opened his eyes, and was greeted with an unfamiliar ceiling... And it didn't appear to be tiled either.

 _So, probably not a hospital..._

Now curious, the man cautiously began to sit himself up in the bed... And frowned when he found it was too easy. Of course, that isn't to say he was complaining. However, he _had_ just been in a rather terrible accident, so shouldn't he have had at least some sort of injuries? He could tell he wasn't on any sort of anesthetics either, seeing as he didn't have an IV drip and he didn't even feel sluggish or dizzy...

 _Things just keep getting stranger and stranger..._

A brief glance around the room summarily confirmed that he was most definitely _not_ in a hospital. On the opposite side of the room, a full-sized bed took up most of the wall. He himself appeared to currently be on the top bunk of a bunk-bed; in between the two beds was roughly four or five feet of clear space. One of the other walls had a pair of chests set up against the base, beneath the room's sole window (currently closed), set into center of the upper half of the wall, with another chest on the opposite wall, next to the door.

 _A barrack?_

The man supposed that was the intended use of the room, but he wouldn't find out anything else by simply continuing to observe the room. So, with an annoyed sigh, he settled back to wait; somebody had deposited him here at some point. It stood to reason that that somebody would eventually be by to check on him.

Fortunately, the wait was not long. After what felt like only five minutes later, voices could be heard approaching.

"So could you tell me again why you decided to put him on the top bunk?"

 _Sounds female, mid to late teens... Probably a nag, too._

"Oh, did the thief forget to steal a brain today too? It wasn't me!"

 _Then again, this guy's voice already makes me want to punch him. Same age, liberal dose of sarcasm with just the wrong amount of drawl._

"So, what, you're saying Neo willingly gave up her own bed?"

 _Definitely don't blame her for being annoyed..._

"Why are you complaining? If anything he should have been put in _your_ bed!"

 _Okay, this is their room._

"True, but st- Oh. You're up."

The door opened just then, and the owners of the voices were met with a curious face greeting them. The man took a moment to study the new arrivals; the male had a pale complexion, a laid back expression, and the curtains seemed to match the windows with a silvery-gray color. The female, at about 5'8" or 5'9", was a few inches shorter than the male and seemed to both contrast and complement him at the same time; minty green hair, red eyes, and an expressive face on dark tanned skin. Both wore outfits that seemed a little strange to the man, but at the same time trendy. Black, silver, and brown for the male, with what appeared to be armor on his upper arms and shins, and something that instantly had the man thinking thief or acrobat for the girl, the way it was both skin-tight and revealing.

"Are you done checking me out, or do you need another minute?"

The man raised a brow in incredulity... And smirked somewhat condescendingly. "I barely looked you over; kind of a habit when meeting someone new. But while we're on the subject, _nice rack_. Based on your annoyance, I'm assuming that rather than enjoying the extra attention your outfit calls to your assets, you choose to display them so prominently in order to distract your marks while you pick their pockets?"

 _That_ shut the girl up rather quickly, while also getting the boy to chuckle.

"You got that from just a glance?"

The man shrugged. "You also called her a thief on your way in. You, on the other hand, strike me as the type who gets a kick out of purposely annoying others... And pretending to be completely nonchalant about it. At least around your girlfriend here-"

"See! Even _he_ knows you want me!"

"Who... currently looks like she wants to shoot one or both of us with those guns her hands are twitching towards. Okay, Cowgirl, shutting up now."

Again, the boy just laughed, while his partner pinched the bridge of her nose in an attempt to stave off the annoyance.

"Why don't we start over?" The man offered. "My name is... My name is..."

The duo raised a brow each in sync as the man trailed off, waiting for him to finish; they probably didn't care in the slightest whether he gave his actual name or an alias. But the man himself was more than just a little bit disturbed; he couldn't remember his own name! He could remember the accident just fine, but his own na-

 _That's probably **why** I don't remember. I probably sustained some blunt force trauma to the head, and the bruise and cracked skull have probably healed by now. But come on, _**amnesia?** _Why do I remember everything else, but not my own chupping **name**?_

"You seem a little panicked there, my friend."

The man glared at the boy.

"Well _excuse_ me for being slightly amnesiac at the moment."

"Merc, he _did_ have a rather nasty looking lump on his head when Cinder brought him in. It makes sense that he'd be a little disoriented."

The man groaned in frustration. "I don't suppose I had any form of identification on me?"

The boy smirked. "Nope," he replied, popping the 'p.'

"Well, crap. I guess for the time being, I'll need an alias..."

"Cerulean?"

The man blinked... As did the boy.

"Where'd you get that from?"

Facepalm. "Your eyes?"

Blink. "What about my eyes?"

Second face, meet second palm. "Your eyes are heterochromatic, dude. Green with blue sections."

... "Whaaaaaaaat? You can see that from down there?"

The girl shrugged. "Your eyes are pretty bright; they may as well be glowing."

 _Okay, this situation just went from highly improbable to damned-near impossible. My eyes are supposed to be hazel... And I've never been told that they **glow** before..._

"Yo, Remnant to Cerulean? You still with us, bro?"

The man started, having retreated into his own thoughts.

"Yeah... I, uh, apparently forgot the color of my own eyes too. Cerulean, huh? Hmm... Let's change the pronunciation on that. Say-rue-lee-on? Care-oo-lee-in? That one. Caerulean, with an A after the C. Yeah, I can live with that for a while. What should I call you guys? I heard her call you Merc earlier, but I feel like it'd be rude to call you that when I don't really even know you, and I assume that offense would be taken if I simply called _you_ Green, Minty."

The boy, Merc, grinned as the girl frowned. "You'd assume right, Caerulean... Emmy here's actual name is Emerald, and Merc is short for Mercury. Merc is fine though, so long as you're cool with me calling you Lee."

"Caerulean _is_ a bit of a mouthful in normal conversation."

"Fantastic, we're all friends now!"

The newly dubbed Caerulean rolled his eyes. "I can see how he annoys you so easily, Emerald."

"Hey!" _"Thank you!"_

"Moving on... Could you guys perhaps tell me why I'm here? I remember there being an accident, which I assume is related to my amnesia and the lump on my head you mentioned earlier, Emerald, but I don't remember anything between that and waking up in this room."

Emerald gave him a look of slight pity. "Sorry, all we really know is that the boss brought you in here a couple of days ago, mentioning that you'd helped her out of a sticky situation."

"This boss," Caerulean pondered, "Is she the same as the Cinder person you mentioned earlier? Do you have any idea what she wants from me?"

"Yes, and no. All she'd tell us," Mercury chimed in, "Was that she'd like to speak to you when you woke up. You feeling up to it?"

Caerulean shrugged, before hopping down to the ground.

"Sure, beats loitering about all day. Lead the way."

* * *

"So... Nice place you got here."

A blank stare from Emerald was the only reply Caerulean received for the inane comment, and rightfully so; the place seemed like a normal enough two-bedroom apartment. Which seemed a little small for four (or more) people to be sharing, but Caerulean had already gotten the impression that these two didn't spend too much idle time here. While they did have a rather easygoing demeanor to them, Caerulean had already observed from their body language that they were quite active individuals. Probably criminals of some sort as well, judging by the guns on that he'd noticed on Emerald earlier. But that didn't faze him much; they'd been nothing but helpful so far, and they had already mentioned that their boss all but owed him a life debt... Not that he could remember how such a debt was incurred. Still, the fact that she'd seen fit to see to his health was enough assurance that she didn't want him dead, so Caerulean was completely relaxed around Mercury and Emerald, at least for now. No, what had him nervous, was the Neapolitan themed kid (who might actually be close to Mercury and Emerald in age, based on her proportions, and just happened to be a midget) currently staring at him like he was the most fascinating thing on the planet... And had been doing so for the last ten minutes, ever since she'd delivered a note from Cinder mentioning that she was out 'making a few acquisitions' and wouldn't return until later in the evening. So Lee had been polite and attempted to make conversation with the new girl, but so far had yet to elicit a single sound from her. And he was finally about to crack.

"You know, if you'd just tell me just what it is you find so fascinating about me, I could probably explain it to you so you wouldn't have to wonder."

... _"Got it! Phew, that was tough. It normally only takes me a few moments to either establish a link or fail. I wonder why you were so difficult?"_

Caerulean felt like he was justified when he jumped backwards against the nearest wall, and most certainly did not yelp. He also most certainly did not pout when both Emerald and Mercury started howling with laughter.

"Oh man, the look on your face right now!"

"You _knew?!_ Wait, what am I saying, of course you knew... Douchebags. Not cool, guys! And _you,_ " Cerulean changed targets, rounding on the offending half-pint. "Give a guy a little warning before invading his head!"

Said half-pint was bouncing around in her seat while wearing a shit-eating grin. _"I saw my opportunity and I took it."_ The girl's expression quickly became thoughtful, however. _"Seriously though, I wonder why your mind was so different? And why you actually seem to be able to understand me?"_

"I would have to know how your ability works in order to give you any sort of logical answer... Not that I can think of a logical reason for how telepathy is even possible in the first place. Whatever. Hardly the strangest thing to happen so far, and I'm sure things will only continue to get stranger from here on out. May as well accept it, am I right?"

 _"On all counts,"_ The literally little girl replied with an amused smirk. _"My name is Neopolitan, by the way, since the lovebirds seem to have forgotten to introduce me."_

Cerulean took one look at Emerald and Mercury, who were indeed sat next to each other on the couch but seemed to be awkwardly uncomfortable about it, then looked back to Neo before both threw their heads back in laughter (one of them louder than the other, of course).

"They're laughing at us, aren't they, Em?"

"No shit, detective... Stupid half-pint..."

Neo, of course, calmed down enough to stick her tongue out at Emerald for the remark before turning back to her new friend.

 _"I think you and I are going to get along just fine..."_

"Caerulean. But you can just call me Lee."

 _"Only if you call me Neo. Oh, and also if you tell the lovebirds that they're terrible hosts."_

"Deal. Merc, Emerald, Neo says that you two are terrible hosts, and I can't say I disagree. 15 minutes without any sort of introduction? Seriously?"

Mercury, as usual, looked like he could care less. "I don't see why it was necessary."

Cerulean just stared blankly at him. "She's a mute."

Emerald returned the expression. "She's also more than capable of communicating in a fashion others can understand."

Caerulean and Neo face-palmed in unison. "You're still supposed to introduce guests when they meet new people..."

* * *

 _The rest of that afternoon went by in a similar fashion; for hours, the four of us just sat there and talked, swapping stories and just getting to know each other... And just like that, I had three new friends. The only three friends I had, actually. They had also explained that I was on a world called Remnant, in the Kingdom of Vale. You see... I'm not originally from this world. You call this planet Remnant... But many who live on it couldn't even tell you what it's a Remnant_ _ **of**_. _But as soon as I stepped outside and saw the shattered moon, I knew... Remnant, while different in many ways from the home I knew... Well, it still was._ _ **Was**_. _You see... I'm pretty sure that Remnant was once known as Earth..._


	4. Chapter 2: Immersion Part 2

**Volume 1**

 **Chapter 2**

 **Immersion**

 **Part 2**

 _Despite waking up in a strange situation, and in a whole new universe (or maybe just several hundreds to thousands of years into a post-apocalyptic future), time seemed to pass relatively quickly in the company of my three new friends. Sure, I was upset that I would likely never see any of my family or old friends again, but my mother had always taught me to look on the bright side. In this case, the bright side being that at least I wasn't dead. Sure, I had amnesia, which included my own name and the string of events that led me to these people, but I could still remember everything that had happened to me in my previous life... And I knew after a little bit of reflection that, somehow, the mere act of coming to Remnant had changed me... And I don't just mean spiritually or emotionally; that's another can of worms altogether. No, I mean that it literally changed me. As in physically. How, or why, I can not even begin to fathom, but there were several obvious changes. For starters, my eyes. I was born with hazel eyes, yet for some reason they had changed to true green with blue spots... Cerulean, as Emerald put it that first day. And my hair, once wiry and curly, had somehow become soft and straight, though still just as thick. But most obvious was my age; I didn't notice it at first, intent as I was upon taking in my surroundings, but I had somehow been de-aged back to my teenage years, but still retained all the height and muscle mass that I most certainly did not have back then. To put it simply, I was a twenty-two year old man in a seventeen year old's body... And I think it must have been obvious to Cinder, because she seemed to take an interest in me a little beyond that of a crime lord scoping out a potential new enforcer..._

* * *

"So let me get this straight. You're saying that I staggered out of the alleyway, covered in my own blood, got rushed by one of the goons that was trying to mug you, then proceeded to take one of her weaons weapons and hack her arm off with it.. Again, all while I was already covered in my own blood."

The masterpiece of a woman sitting across from Caerulean shifted her expression from its' previous poker face to a slight amused smirk. "I brought them with me, by the way, in case you'd like to keep them as souvenirs."

Despite the situation, Caerulean couldn't help but let out a hastily suppressed snort of laughter even as his eyes widened. Then they narrowed in thought. "Did I kill her?"

The ravenette's smirk became more pronounced as some of the gold accents came to life, and with a casual shrug flames appeared above her upturned hand. "No, but you did distract her long enough for me to finish the job."

"Oh." Caerulean was equal parts impressed and fascinated. "You know, that's a pretty ironic power to possess considering your name, Cinder..." Indeed, I was talking to the one and only boss lady, referred to thus far only as Cinder. Which I assumed was actually her name and not just an alias, based on her orange-amber eyes, which were so bright they nearly glowed. I could easily see her having been given a name related to fire... And given how casually she could summon it, I had no problem believing that she'd had no problem with the other goon. In short, this was somebody not to be trifled with. "Sorry. That was rude of me. Could you please tell me what happened next, after you reduced the goon to a _cinder?_ "

A masculine chuckle and a feminine groan, as well as a feminine snorting sound that seemed to come from Caerulean's own mind (but he knew better!) alerted him to what his audience thought of that pun. Which of course meant it had been well timed. The pale-skinned beauty seemed to appreciate it too, for while she did not laugh, her eyes did crinkle very slightly in amusement.

"You fainted."

Cue the soul crushing regret, as all three of the other occupants of the room let their mirth be known. Caerulean, of course, did _not_ pout at Neo for what he viewed as a betrayal, instead choosing to simply ask Cinder (most certainly without whining) "...Seriously?"

"Yes. Though to your credit, it was not until after I unlocked your aura. While it's not exactly a common occurrence, it certainly is not unheard of, especially when one is already both wounded and exhausted."

Caerulean nodded in satisfaction at that (without turning to poke his tongue out at Neo), his sense of masculinity restored. And, more importantly, it was a believable course of events. Emerald had explained earlier about some of the more... supernatural things that occurred on the world of Remnant, including aura, so Caerulean could see how something like that would knock him out. Of course, he was still confused as to how he could even _have_ an aura considering that he was originally from Earth... But if the moon was any indication, then Remnant was Earth... Or rather, _is_ Earth, just an alternate version of it... Be it the future of his own dimension or a brand new one all together. So it could be possible that humans did indeed have it all along back in his home... time? Dimension? Whichever, and it simply wasn't ever discovered because nobody ever unlocked it... Or they did and nobody believed them? He wasn't sure, but he could have sworn that there were at least a few legends of mystics and master level martial arts practitioners with powers that sounded similar to what could be achieved with aura...

"A lien for your thoughts, Cerulean?"

Cerulean jumped a little as his thought process was interrupted. "Oh! It's nothing, I was just wondering how I could be injured so badly, yet somehow be capable of taking down a seasoned criminal-"

"Whose aura was unlocked," the fire-eyed woman interjected, "while yours was not."

"Right. Which, based on what these three have been telling me, should be extremely difficult even under favorable circumstances, and next to impossible otherwise. I know I'm suffering from some limited amnesia, but... I'm pretty sure I don't have any form of combat training whatsoever. Sure, I watch a lot of martial arts and action flicks, but I've never actually _trained._ "

Cinder raised an eyebrow. "While I am inclined to believe in a certain amount of luck playing a part in that particular encounter, after watching you disarm that ex-Huntswoman and then kill her with her own weapon, I am also inclined to believe that there was some skill involved too. Perhaps you were trained at some point, but do not remember it?"

Caerulean shook his head emphatically. "Absolutely not. I don't remember my own name, or anything that happened between my vehicle accident and waking up here, but everything else seems to be intact; there are no other gaps in my memory."

"Curious..." She practically purred whilst cupping her chin in her hand. Suddenly, Caerulean felt like he was beneath a microscope.

"Ma'am, Caerulean does seem to possess a unique talent to read body language at a glance, and then compile it with information he's already gathered to come to rapid conclusions. While he's been wrong on a couple of instances so far-"

Caerulean scoffed, and Neo just smirked at Emerald, both knowing exactly which instance she was referring to.

"He has been mostly accurate otherwise."

"Oh?" The older woman drawled. "Do tell."

"Well, he was able to deduce rather quickly that I'm a thief."

"Instantly, Cinder. We walked into the room, he took one look at her, she said something rude, and then after laying a quick verbal beat down on her, concluded that she's a thief. All in a matter of seconds!"

Caerulean flashed Mercury a grateful grin, which grew wider as he noticed Emerald's rather embarrased expression, before turning back to Cinder, grin still on his face. "I can also tell that whatever you're thinking, it involves me and it's got you rather excited."

"You are not wrong."

Expressions amongst the audience ranged from intrigue (Neo), to incredulity (Mercury), to incensed (Emerald) at the byplay going on between their leader and their houseguest; while Cinder did usually come off as a rather sultry individual, and was no stranger to wordplay, the trio had never, Caerulean would later learn, witnessed her quote-unquote "flirting", without there being some hint of a threat hidden beneath her tone. Instead of the usual smirk, Cinder was currently wearing a grin that mirrored Cerulean's, and her subordinates were clearly taken aback by it.

Cerulean's grin only widened at this. "Voyeurs, the lot of you. Not like that, perverts! Chupping teenagers, can't keep their minds out of the gutter..." Cinder laughed openly at this, while all three of her charges look properly embarrased... While conveniently forgetting that Caerulean himself was physically a teenager, only a bit older than them, and that Cinder probably wasn't too much older than he was. Still...

 _Payback, bitches!_

"Ahem. Anyway. As I was saying, Cinder, you look like you can't wait to offer me a job... Though, to be fair, that one was rather easy to tell. Before I consider it though, just what exactly do you guys do? And where would I fit into that?"

Cinder's smile finally seemed to settle back into a smirk as the conversation returned to business. Caerulean was fine with that, though; she had already indulged him his fun once, and judging by how relatively quickly he was being extended an invitation to join this group, he felt confident in concluding that she already liked him. In a totally platonic way, just to clarify; it was clear that neither was the type for love at first meeting or any of that cliche bull-shtak. No, they were just two kindred souls who could easily become great friends... Assuming Caerulean decided to take Cinder up on her offer, anyway.

"For now, we're independent contractors-"

"She means mercenaries."

"... _Yes_ , which Cerulean is smart enough to figure without your help. Do be quiet whilst I am speaking, Mercury."

"Fine..."

"Ahem. As I was saying, we are independent contractors for hire, specializing in covert operations ranging from asset acquisition and appropriation to intelligence gathering and VIP neutralization. Should you choose to join us, you will spend a period of time training your combat skills and taking on lower-risk missions to reach a level where you can consistently at least keep up with the rest of us in combat situations, at which point you will join us for the... higher risk operations."

"That was an impressive amount of euphemisms in one paragraph." Despite the levity of the remark, Caerulean was fixing Cinder with a very sober expression. "But I can live with that... And, you know, what you were actually euphemizing. For the most part. Can I choose to opt out of the... neutralization missions, or at least be relegated to support for those types of operations?"

For her part, Cinder seemed to finally take a moment to consider her answer, apparently unprepared for such a question; if Caerulean had to guess, he'd venture that she hadn't been expecting someone who'd already killed a man up close and personal to be squeamish about potentially having to do so yet again... Even if he didn't remember having done so the first time.

"I... make no guarantees, but in most cases I do not foresee requiring you for a direct neutralization when any of the rest of us are more or equally capable of accomplishing such tasks. So unless something drastic occurs, or you should later have a change of heart, I will not ask you to be the one to accomplish the primary objective on those types of operations... But if it does turn out that you should end up on the roster for one of these missions, I will expect you to perform your job."

Caerulean put a hand to his chin in thought. "So basically, you'll take my feelings about having to directly neutralize a target into account when planning a mission, but if circumstances arise where I am the only one who can do so, or need to do so in order to complete the mission or keep myself or any of the rest of you safe from harm, I'll be expected to do it anyway."

"That is correct."

"Hmm..." Caerulean leaned back in his chair, pretending to think. "Fair enough. I'm in."

Cinder appeared to satisfied, perhaps even pleased, but of their audience of three, at least one of them was skeptical. "Just like that?"

He turned to face her. "Like I said earlier, Emerald, you three-" he paused, glanced at Cinder, then amended his statement, "four, now, are literally the only people on all of Remnant I know. You may not believe it, but that's the truth. And while I may not be quite morally comfortable with what you guys do, the fact remains that you all literally saved my life. On a logical basis, you could say that Cinder was merely returning the favor, thus leaving me no obligation, but the way I see it you're all my fa- friends now, and friends stick together."

Cerulean could feel himself flushing a little at just how sappy that sounded, as well as the Freudian slip, but it was the truth... And lying in this instance wouldn't exactly get him anywhere. And in any case, it seemed to do the trick, for while she was doing her best to feign disgust, he could see the small, genuine smile that broke through onto her visage before she swiftly turned away. Mercury, on the other hand, had no problem expressing satisfaction with this turn of events, nodding at him with a grin before turning to pester Emerald. And Neo...

"Oof!"

Neo had seen fit to tackle him out of his chair, eliciting chuckles from all present.

"We will put together a training regimen for you tomorrow, Caerulean," Cinder stated as she stood from her seat. "For now, it's getting rather late; I suggest getting some rest. Tomorrow will be a rather important day, so you had best be prepared... That goes for all of you."

"Yes ma'am." "Sure thing." "Aye, Captain."

And with that, Cinder strutted out of the room, drawing all eyes in the room with her before she disappeared into her bedroom. And Caerulean didn't need to see her face to know that she was very likely smirking; the strut in her hips most certainly did that for him. Three heads shook themselves to break free of the trance, while the fourth just shook her own in exasperated amusement. And Caerulean, consistent to form so far, noticed all of this.

"Oh, shush Neo. Just because you don't swing that way doesn't mean you haven't noticed that woman is just plain sexy. And she knows it, too! I'm betting straight men and lesbian women everywhere think of Cinder when they think about the perfect set of legs. Emerald, I'm looking at you."

Needless to say, Emerald did her best impersonation of a ruby at having been caught staring so blatantly... While Neo and the guys laughed at her reaction. Though Mercury seemed to be forcing it...

 _Interesting_... _It seems **he's** the one who wants **her**. I'll be sure to keep that in mind._

"Well, I suppose we'd better do as Cinder said and get to bed... That didn't rhyme in my head... Dammit." Cerulean chuckled, shaking his head at his own accidental word play, before focusing his attention on the most immediate obstacle he faced. "Anyway, on that note, Neo, would ya mind getting off me? I mean, I don't exactly _mind_ letting you sleep on me, but I'd rather myself be lying on something soft first."

For whatever reason, the half-pint _teen_ , Caerulean had finally noticed thanks to having her pressed up against him, had yet to get off of him after tackling him to the floor (not that he was complaining). And while she wasn't heavy, he figured it would be a little rude to just pick her up without warn-

 _Screw that, she started it._

Caerulean stood up before Neo could, forcing her to either hold on for dear life... Or allow herself to be dropped to the floor. She chose the former, and simply wrapped her legs around his stomach once he straightened out, and smirked at him.

"Unless you get off, I'm just going to assume that means I'm sharing with you. Only three beds, remember?"

Her smirk seemed to falter for a moment as a slight blush came over her cheeks... But that had to be a trick of his mind because in the next second she was back to the way she was befor-

 _Wait a second. Trick of the mind?_

Cerulean's eyes narrowed as he focused... And just like that, the illusion vanished, and he was once again holding a nervous half-pint of Neopolitan... If the way she was biting her lip was any indication.

"You've got until I reach that door. Speak now or forever hold your peace, Neo."

A glare for the 'speak' comment as he started walking towards the shared bedroom, before her visage finally settled back into a smirk... Except, this time, it was challenging?

"I _will_ do it."

Confidence... he finally passed through the door.

"Oh, I see, you want me to. Okay. I have no problem being a human teddy bear, so long as you don't try to kill me for any awkward situations that might arise in the morning. I am _not_ a morning person, so none of that bullshit before I've even properly woken up."

A slight blush... Reality shift... Focus... Shift... Doubt... Snuggle.

"Shtako." Caerulean dropped onto the larger bed.

Giggle. Or, rather, _"giggle."_

"It was nice knowing you, Lee." "Better you than me."

 _Why do they look so... Mournful?_

* * *

 _And that was how I learned that Neo is clingy... Very clingy. To the point of suffocation... Literally. Had it not been for Cinder unlocking my Aura, Neo very well could have ended up crushing my ribs. As it was, it was still uncomfortable enough that I was up for another few hours before I could finally fall asleep... But that's not important. What is important is that, by the end of Day One, I had already been accepted. I had four new friends, a potential best-friend, and a place and purpose in this world... It might not have been a path I would have followed back in my old world, but things like coming to a new world have a way of changing a man. I may not have been of Remnant, but by the end of the first day I was already taking steps towards making this world my own._


	5. Chapter 3: Immersion Part 3

**With the addition of this chapter, I will be re-titling the first two chapters, making this one part 3 of the current arc.**

* * *

 **Volume 1, Chapter 3**

 **Immersion Part 3**

 _Training. Now there's a word that filled me with equal parts excitement and dread. On the one hand, I was over the moon at the thought of potentially becoming both skilled enough and strong enough to pull off some of the moves I'd seen in some martial arts movies, and maybe some of the more outlandish stuff I'd seen in animated films... Such as running up walls and smashing boulders with just my fists. But on the other hand, I knew that the road to reach that level of prowess was going to be long and by no means easy; while before I came to Remnant, I had been six feet tall and about 150 pounds, I could probably count on two hands the number of times I had exercised in the two years before The Accident. But at the same time, whatever cosmic phenomenon had messed with my eyes and hair had also seen fit to modify my physical size; I hadn't noticed until that morning, but I had gone from being in the smaller (yet taller) range of being average sized to having a semi-athletic build. I was by no means ripped... But I had visible muscle tone... And abs. Oh did I love finally having abs. The only thing that I didn't like was that I had also apparently shrunk a couple of inches... But, since I had apparently been de-aged, that at least made sense; I was just glad it hadn't shrunk me any further. But I digress. The gist of the matter is, I was given a pass on the physical conditioning, needing only to keep up a regular routine in order to maintain my new-found fitness._

 _So, with the physical fitness prerequisite being met, and my own backstory confirming that, at least in the realm of mathematics, science, and language, I was more than competent for my apparent age, the focus of my training would thus be on developing combat skills, and correcting my rather obvious lack of even the most basic facets of the world of Remnant. The latter was simple enough; merely conversing with my companions about the things I'd see on a regular basis would do well enough in making me not look like an idiot every time I went out into the world, and I could just read a few history books to achieve a basic understanding of world history. But combat would require a more hands on approach... And in order to quickly reach a level Cinder deemed acceptable, I would be taking the most hands on approach possible short of being put in a live situation..._

* * *

Caerulean had been called many things in his twenty-two years of life. Intelligent, considerate, and funny most certainly being on the list. Attractive, too, thanks to having what could be equally called either a pretty boy face or a decently handsome one. Yet, at the same time, he'd somehow never been very good at attracting the interest of the fairer sex, so it was with a good deal of surprise that he realized that the pressure on the one side of his body was, in fact, a girl using him as a pillow/teddy bear/space heater combination. Of course, that isn't to say he'd _never_ found himself in such a situation... But it certainly had not happened often in his life. And especially not with someone that small. And unfamiliar...

 _Oh. Wait. That's Neo. Which means that no, I didn't... At least I don't **think** I did..._

A quick glance downwards revealed that they were both still fully clothed and atop the covers.

 _We didn't... And the fact that I'm still in this place means I didn't just dream it all up. Unless this is a dream within a dream, which I suppose could be possible, but I don't think I'm the type to have Inception-like dreams, so I'm gonna assume that's a no._

Caerulean sighed resignedly; that train of thought was on the fast track to nowhere. As much as he might have wanted it to be, this was no dream, which meant that, regardless of how it had come to be, this was his new reality. And the reality of the moment was that he was currently lying in bed, with a girl currently cuddling up to him; it wasn't a terrible reality to find ones' self in.

Except for the fact that he'd knowingly and willingly chosen to cast his lot in with a group of criminals. Well, mercenaries, which, for Caerulean at least, wasn't _quite_ as bad, but still...

 _What was I thinking?!_

Sure, the types of jobs Cinder claimed they took didn't sound too bad (the occasional assassination aside), but the crux of the matter was that if he was going to stick with this group, he would eventually find himself forced to hurt and possibly even kill others, be it to complete a mission or purely in self defense; he wasn't sure if he could do it. Yet, somehow, he'd already done it once... Unless Cinder had lied. Which was definitely a possibility... Yet, she had seemed so interested in acquiring his apparent talent... no, she was probably correct, and he truly had killed that man.

 _In self defense, if what Cinder said was any indication. I need to stop dwelling on that._

So with no small effort, Caerulean decided to just appreciate the moment and settle back in the bed, opting not to wake the slumbering Neo; just because he couldn't go back to sleep didn't mean she deserved to be woken up... Though, he did wonder just when they were all expected to be up and ready for the day. Cinder may not have appeared much older than her three subordinates (Lee's guess placed her somewhere in her mid-twenties), but she oozed confidence in a way that left no doubt that she was The Boss, and surely The Boss had a basic schedule her minions were expected to keep outside of special... operations.

 **HONNNNK! HONNNNK! HONNNNK! HONNNNK!**

Apparently, Caerulean was psychic. With a groan, he sat up in bed, dislodging Neo in the process, and cast his eyes about for the source of the alarm; he hadn't seen one when he woke up yesterday?

"For Dust's sake, Merc! Shut it off already, I'm up!"

In what appeared to be a well practiced motion, Mercury didn't even look as he snaked his arm out and slammed a fist down atop the offending device, which had been located... directly beneath his head, in the space between the bed and the floor.

"Five more minutes, Em..."

"I am _not_ waking your ass up if you fall asleep again!"

" _Good_..."

Caerulean just chuckled at the interaction before turning his gaze down to look at Neo, who was currently blinking the sleep out of her eyes.

"Rise and shine, short stuff!"

The girl just rolled her eyes at him before hopping out of bed. _"Don't call me that."_

Caerulean smirked. "Whatever you say... half-pint."

And he was promptly rewarded with a swat to the chest... Which actually hurt somewhat.

"Sorry."

 _"You better be."_

Caerulean was left flabbergasted when she briskly stomped away from him... But not before pausing to effortlessly drag Mercury out of his bunk as she passed. Which drew chuckles from both himself and Emerald.

"Is... She not a morning person?" Caerulean asked Emerald as she finished making up her bunk, "Or did I just manage to piss her off somehow?"

A pitying sigh was what he received in response to that query from its' intended recipient; it was from the grounded Mercury (who was stubbornly refusing to get off the ground) that he got an actual response from. "You called her short, Lee. Short people never like being reminded of that."

Caerulean face-palmed. Of course, that should have been an obvious trigger.

"I'll just have to make it up to her later." He decided before turning to make up the bed... Which really just consisted of smoothing out the sheets and reconfiguring the pillows, seeing as he and Neo had fallen asleep above the covers. "Now, correct me if I'm wrong, Merc, but shouldn't you be getting up now? I may not know any of you very well, but I'm willing to bet Cinder isn't the type to be cool with you just lazing about in bed all morning."

"No, she's not," Emerald interjected, punctuating it with a kick to Mercury's legs... Which barely got a grunt out of him. "Now seriously, Mercury, get up. We're gonna have a long day ahead of us, and the last thing we need is to waste time listening to Cinder tear you a new one, as entertaining as that would be."

Caerulean raised a brow at the scene. "Is he always like this in the morning?"

"He's pretty much useless before 8 unless there's something _really_ important going on."

"Hmm..."

Just then, the sound of running water could be heard coming from the restroom... Which gave Cerulean an idea.

"You grab his arms, I'll get his legs?"

"O-kaaaaaaay. But I don't see where you're going with this?"

"Oh, you will here in a moment."

A couple of moments later, the two were carrying a sleeping Mercury out of the bedroom... And towards the restroom.

"Oh. I like this plan." Emerald smirked as Cerulean backed through the door, receiving a thumbs up from a smiling Neo.

"On three... One... Two... Three!"

And with a heave, the two teenagers tossed the still sleeping one into a tub of cold water, making sure to jump backwards to avoid the splash.

"Waaaah! The hell!?"

And with one final, synchronized shtak-eating grin, the offending teens sprinted out of the restroom, leaving Mercury alone to process the rude awakening.

* * *

"I really hate you guys sometimes..."

Caerulean rolled his eyes before returning to his cereal; Mercury, it seemed, was still upset over the morning's earlier incident. But, it was as he and Emerald had said earlier; they were to have a long (and in his own case, _important_ ) day, so it really wouldn't do to sleep in; to quote a proverb that had been ancient in his home universe, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. And today was the day he'd be taking that first step. Speaking of which...

"So... Any idea when Cinder is supposed to show up?"

 _"Somebody's excited."_

Indeed, the excitement had leaked into Caerulean's voice, and Neo had been quick to call him out on it. Still, he felt it was perfectly justified.

"Hey, just because you're all used to being able to deflect bullets with just your soul and then throw down kung fu moves like Jet Li doesn't mean someone who _was_ normal until yesterday can't get excited about soon being able to do the same!"

"Well, he's not wrong."

"Thank you, Merc!"

"It's still entertaining from our side of things though."

" _Screw you_ , Merc..."

 _"Awe, don't take it so personally,"_ Neo chimed in. _"We've just never seen anybody this excited to learn how to fight."_

"What, you guys weren't like that back before your auras were unlocked?"

 _"Well... Maybe. I can't speak for them, but in my case I was so young that I don't really remember what I was feeling."_

"Liar." Caerulean scoffed. "I bet you were just as excited as I am; you probably did a little happy dance, too."

 _"Believe what you want; I really don't remember. But..."_ Neo smirked, a devious glint coming into her eyes. _"I'll make sure to remember how your training goes."_

Suddenly, Caerulean feared that he wasn't going to enjoy this as much as he thought he would. But he'd be damned if he let that deter him! He had the capability to shatter boulders with his fists now, so he couldn't allow fear of the journey take away from his yearning for the destination! The road would be long, it would be tough, but in the end, it would be totally worth it! He just had to get the crown, save the town and Mr. Kra-

"Remnant to Caerulean! Come in, Lee!"

"Bwah! Emerald, don't do that!" And by that, Cerulean meant invade his personal space to yell right into his ear. He felt justified in jumping about a foot in the air, even if it did lead to Mercury and Neo laughing at him. Emerald herself just seemed to be exasperated... Which was becoming a bit of a recurring theme, he noticed.

"Well maybe I wouldn't have to if you'd stop zoning out so often!"

"Sorry, sorry... I was just repsyching myself for today. What did you want, again?"

"I was asking how you can understand her so easily!"

"Wait, what? I thought we went over this already, she's telepathic..?"

"Yes, but not so much so that she can perfectly transfer what she's thinking into other people's heads! Yet here you are having a conversation with her as easily as you would with one of us."

Caerulean just had to raise a brow at that. "I don't know what you're talking about; she makes perfect sense to me."

 _"I can't send more than images and emotions to most people, and even that has to be supported with body language most of the time. But don't tell them that."_

"And apparently, I'm not allowed to tell you why that is. I guess the only advice I have for you is to try harder?"

Emerald huffed in irritation, but had little choice but to accept that answer; it wasn't as if Neo was about to clarify.

As for Caerulean himself, he had noticed that nobody answered his original question... But he wasn't about to make a pest of himself by repeating it. Instead, he opted to take a moment to really examine his new room mates; while he had made some basic observations the previous day, he hadn't yet taken the time to go in depth. But with the natural lull in the conversation, and all that was currently being done was eating, he felt he could take a moment to consciously add to their dossiers. Caerulean decided to start with Emerald, seeing as he'd just gotten done having a conversation with her; being sat on the next face in the clockwise direction of the square table made doing so convenient.

Emerald, as he had noted the previous day, had minty green hair (which, quite frankly, Caerulean thought was pretty cool) that was pulled back into a single long pony tail, not quite reaching her derriere when she was standing, but it wasn't one of those pony tails where literally all of the person's hair is being pulled back from their face; rather, it was more like what would be a natural curtain of hair was bound together by a red elastic band, and then somehow separated into two tails that didn't quite reach her derriere, allowing her to also have bangs that just barely hung down over her eyes, which reminded him of blood (which was somehow both terrifying and exotic, due to him not being used to it). Both of these features contrasted her dark skin, that he would place somewhere between milk chocolate and mocha (slightly darker than his own). And her outfit showed off a good deal of it, leaving her entire flat yet curvy midriff and lower back exposed, as well as a pair of admittedly shapely calves and the entirety of her arms. Despite this, her outfit remained mostly tasteful, albeit odd _(chaps, I'm looking at you!)_ , but from what he had been told, most Hunters or Hunter-like (in terms of aura and prowess) individuals tended to dress uniquely and distinctively. Emerald was no exception, combining a white ribbon-collared green sports bra _(or is that technically a halter top?)_ for her top, while she wore brown chaps over green capris on bottom. For accessories, she had... Single-half-fingered white gloves? Lee didn't know just what to call those, but they were _apparently_ a thing... as were her gun/sickle/kusarigama things.

 _And all of that on a body that looks very well specialized towards dexterity and agility... Though, color of her eyes aside, you wouldn't expect someone with a face that inviting to be capable of treachery. Definitely the thief of the group._

Directly across from Lee, and thus next on the list, sat Mercury. Discounting his hair and eyes, which were both a slightly blueish, grey color that resembled the element he shared a name with, Mercury looked like he was just your average, trendy cool guy, down to the pretty boy face and nonchalant sneer. Sporty, two-tone collared shirt with half-tail, matching pants, steel-capped boots, and fingerless gloves. What made him stand out, however, were the boots... Which also just happened to be shotguns.

 _Close combat specialist... And likely a high-level martial artist, based on his weapons of choice. Prefers kicking, obviously. I'll definitely be taking pointers from that guy._

And last, but most certainly not least, was Neo, short for Neopolitan, whose parents had clearly held an appreciation for pun-based humor, which she herself seemed to take to the next level with her outfit... Which, Cerulean had to say, was easily the classiest there. A pink-lined white crop-topped tail coat... Or did that make it a tailed-bolero jacket? Bolero tail coat? Whatever the proper name for it was, it would have left her midriff bare when worn (it currently was draped across the back of her chair)... Except that she wore a plain, black-brown corset beneath it, which itself didn't quite reach her hips, leaving a band of pale but healthy skin around her waist and a rather impressive amount of cleavage for someone of her relative size exposed (the latter of which Caerulean earned a wink for from the girl when she caught him looking). Brown pants of a lighter shade than her corset, along with belts which matched the corset, covered her legs, which Caerulean noticed were quite shapely as well. Add in the literal neapolitan hair (half pink, half brown, with white streaks in the pink portion), which rolled in a few waves all the way down her back, and eyes which could seemingly alternate between two of those colors at will, and you would arrive at a very stylish young woman. Actually, he decided that 'fabulous' would be the better word. The only thing that Caerulean might have found ridiculous were the white, knee-high 5 or 6 inch high-heeled boots... But the woman was only 4'9" (just under 1.45 meters) with them, so he could understand they were necessary.

 _Of the group, she's the only one I've yet to see exhibit any sort of weapon... But the parasol by the door matches her color scheme and seems pretty sturdy. Wouldn't surprise me if the canopy is actually made of kevlar or something... In which case the handle is probably also a saber or some such bladed implement. Simply being with a group like this means she's got to have some sort of extraordinary talent with weapons, and if that parasol is indeed her weapon of choice, combined with those extreme heels... I'm going to wager she's skilled enough to compensate, which would also make her the most skilled fighter in the room... Though Mercury probably has an edge on her simply by being larger and presumably stronger... Then again, she did drag him out of bed without even slowing down..._

While he didn't let it dampen his enthusiasm any, Lee was feeling really out of place at the moment; in contrast to their customized and stand-out appearances, he was merely wearing a (torn) black T-shirt with "Kill la Kill" printed in orange block lettering next to a figure of a girl in a sailor uniform wielding a scissor blade, dark grey jeans, and a pair of steel toed boots. Which would have certainly stood out in his own world, but his palette was lacking compared to these three. Granted, he did have unique eyes; he doubted there were very many people walking around Remnant with sectoral heterochromia (as opposed to Neo's heterochromia iridum) eyes with two alternately colored sections on each eye, and perfectly mirrored no less (imagine an iris, divide it into six sections, then fill in the two directly at the 3 and 9 'oclock positions with blue, while the other four sections are green). His physical appearance was otherwise attractive enough but unspectacular. He had tanned skin that he would define as being somewhere between olive and honey in shade, but lighter in tone, as well as black hair that was healthy enough and currently just brushed and combed into a sorta-faux hawk. Along with some gel to get it to stay like that, he would definitely need to procure some better gear at some point. But that was a problem for later. Right then, Lee had more pressing concerns... Such as Cinder finally entering the room.

"I see you are all awake. I take it that you are ready to begin the day?"

A chorus of affirmatives greeted her.

"Very well, let us be off."

* * *

"Why am I not surprised?"

Caerulean's rhetorical question, grumbled under his breath, was in response to having been told that in order to properly assess his current standing, he would be starting with hand-to-hand sparring matches. Which, while it was probably the only form of combat he could expect to have any form of skill it, was still probably going to result in nothing less than him getting his ass handed to him. And to that effect, the group had migrated to a private training facility.

 _Well, at least my first opponent is Emerald._

Of course, that statement could be compared to an average human in Dragon Ball being tasked with fighting each of the Z fighters in order, and then being glad that Yamcha (or perhaps Krillin, depending on the saga) was the first opponent; sure, he might be the weakest/least skilled fighter among them, but that didn't mean he couldn't still take your Average Joe ass down before you had time to even try.

 _Then again, Cinder said that she unlocked my aura, and, at least from what I understand, aura here doesn't seem to work the same way as ki in the Dragonball series; everyone has a finite amount, and more experience simply translates to using it more efficiently... I'm at a disadvantage, sure, but purely in skill. Simply having my aura unlocked means that, physically, I should be able to keep up with her well enough that I may have a chance..._

That was Caerulean's hope, anyway, as he finished doing some preliminary stretches, all while observing his green-themed opponent doing the same across from him... Which reminded him that she seemed to be more of a speed and flexibility type.

 _Right. With that in mind, my best bet will be to grab her in order to prevent that speed from becoming my downfall, and hope that I'm strong enough to overpower her with grappling techniques._

Strategy in place, Caerulean stepped up to the mat, confidently taking up his best approximation at a fighting stance; legs bent slightly in a horse stance, with his body at an angle towards his opponent. His offhand held semi-curled in front of him at shoulder height, palm at a 135 degree angle to the ground, elbow crooked somewhere between a 30 and a 45 degree angle. Main hand, next to his chin, palm flat, fingers pointing a line through his off hand straight to his opponent. His entire body lightly bobbing up and down in time with his breath, which he was taking efforts to control. He did his best to ignore the giggling he could _'hear'_ from Neo. The taunt that came from Emerald, however, wasn't quite as easy to shrug off.

"Well, at least you _look_ like you have at least some idea of what you're supposed to be doing. You ready to lose, Lee?"

For the briefest of moments, he found himself regretting how often he'd needled her so far... But then he decided he may as well try to use that.

"The only thing I'm ready to do is wipe that smug grin off your face, Em!"

The banter, friendly as it was, served as an excellent way to keep Lee focused; he'd be damned if he let her win without putting up at least a half-way decent fight!

"I take it you're ready then?" Mercury interjected, for once not sounding either smug or bored. Caerulean responded with a nod.

"Emerald?"

A confidently affirmative grunt as she flipped into her own pose... Which, to Cerulean's slight surprise, turned out to be Ty Lee's from The Last Airbender series, in the one episode that she went to the beach with Azula and Co., where she balances on the volleyball net right after kicking the ball out of the air. Normally, he would have found that maneuver just plain _awesome_ , but seeing as he was about to fight her...

 _I'm boned._

"Alright then. Three..."

Emerald straightened herself back up into something resembling an actual combat stance, rather than a flashy pose.

"Two..."

Lee took a deep breath to calm himself.

"One... Fight!"

Cerulean's eyes widened in surprise as, almost quicker than he could see, Emerald shot towards him... With her right leg extended?

Time seemed to slow to a crawl as Cerulean reacted. Offhand, already held in front, was raised and moved slightly to the side... Where it impacted Emerald's oncoming ankle, bringing her roundhouse kick to an abrupt stop. Continuing the motion, Cerulean pivoted on the same foot while at the same time uncoiling his main arm like a striking viper, driving his knifed main hand directly into the girl's sternum.

"Oof!" The widening of Emerald's eyes as the air was forcefully expelled from her lungs only fueled Cerulean's sudden surge of confidence. Taking advantage of both the surprise and Emerald's current lack of air, Cerulean rotated the wrist of his off hand, changing his position from blocking her kick to having a hold of her by the leg, then used his right ankle, currently next to Emerald's, to sweep Emerald's remaining leg from beneath her while falling forwards, slamming the thief to the ground with 165 pounds of man pinning her there.

"And the victory goes to Cerulean. Damn, Lee. Nice combo."

Cerulean merely grinned towards Mercury before lifting himself up off of Emerald, offering the greenette a hand up once he'd done so.

"Yes, that was indeed a well thought out maneuver. However, do not hesitate between blocking and attacking next time; had Emerald recovered from her surprise any more expeditiously, she would have easily had time to cause said maneuver to fail. On that note, Emerald, you now know that Cerulean is capable of keeping up with your speed, at least to an extent. Unless you possess the element of surprise, attempting an instant take down against an opponent you know little to nothing about is nothing short of folly; underestimating an opponent can and very likely will lead to defeat, such as which you just experienced."

Both teens winced, but replied with a "Yes ma'am" before returning to their respective ends of the training mat.

* * *

 _As much as I wish I could say otherwise, that first victory proved to be nothing more than luck; Emerald underestimated me, and I was just skilled enough to take advantage of that before she could recover. After that first match, however, we fought four more, and I lost each and every time. Yet not as swiftly or painfully as I had feared; combined with just a little bit of skill, my new physique proved to be quite resilient to Emerald's style of swift, accurate strikes, so long as I didn't let her hit any pressure points. But while I can't say I ever completely overcame that particular weakness, I most certainly did develop some sort of resistance to such tactics over the next several months, and with that resistance, came the chance to actually counter Emerald... Until, eventually, I would able to fight equally with her... at least in unarmed combat. But like I said, that wouldn't be for months. In the meantime, there were other problems that needed to be addressed..._


	6. Chapter 4: Immersion Part 4

**Well, that chapter took a while to write. Somehow, group scenes just come naturally to me, but one on one situations really require some thought as to how to have them communicate everything I want them to, without it feeling like it's obviously staged. On that note, I would really appreciate some input as to what you guys thought about the conversations in this chapter; too short, too long, too much rambling? Anyway, thank you to those of you who have already taken the time to review. So without further ado, let's get on with the story!**

 **-CS**

* * *

 **Volume 1, Chapter 4**

 **Immersion Part 4**

 _Shopping; for most heterosexual males, there's not a single word more exasperating than that one, especially when a member of the opposite sex is the one doing said shopping. But as much as I would have liked to skip the trip and just let one of the ladies handle it for me, I knew that actually attempting to do so would be a very bad idea. For one, I could already tell that Cinder was the type of boss who you didn't say no to without a very good reason. And second... Well, she had tasked Neo with accompanying me. While I trusted her fashion sense, based on what she chose to dress herself in, I most certainly did not trust in her ability to resist the urge to mischief; if I had simply let Neo pick for me, I probably would have ended up in a clown suit or something equally ridiculous. So I made the obvious choice and swallowed my disdain, allowing myself to be dragged to the mall by Neo so we could shop for clothes..._

* * *

"Couldn't we have just gone to Dust-Mart or something?"

Caerulean was anything but pleased with how his day had been going so far; while it had started out pretty well, things had quickly turned south once he became little more than a living punching bag for the moodiest teenage girl he knew. Which, granted, was not a difficult title to obtain seeing as he currently only knew two teenage girls, but Emerald in particular seemed to take a sadistic pleasure in whittling him down until he could barely stand. Not that Lee blamed her; despite befriending her, he had been just a little bit of a douche nugget to her over the last twenty-four hours. So he supposed that he could live with the results of that particular sparring session; painful as it was, it had also been informative. But what his already sour mood could not take, was the prospect of clothes shopping with a teenage girl... Even if they were currently only buying things for him.

 _"Please, as if any friend of mine is going to wear something as plebeian as to have been purchased at Dust-Mart."_

"Hey! I'll have you know that most of my wardrobe before coming to Remnant consisted of articles purchased from my world's equivalent store!"

 _"Which would explain why you look like a pleb."_

Lee growled at the diminutive, smirking girl, earning more than a few odd stares from other clientele.

 _"Lee, you're making yourself look crazy."_

"What?"

A quick glance around the store showed that, yes, people were indeed looking at him with some amount of concern. So he quickly shot a glare back at Neo before turning to inspect the racks, in hopes of simply getting this over with quickly.

To better explain Lee's current predicament, one must remember: he had arrived on Remnant with nothing but the clothes on his back. And considering that he'd been in a rather bad automobile accident just prior to his arrival, said clothes now sported several rips and gashes. Which wasn't the end of the world, seeing as he had been wearing a black graphic T-shirt and dark jeans beneath his completely unsalvageable jacket, but the fact remained that he couldn't very well make do with just a single set of clothing for any length of time lasting longer than a couple of days. So, after his sparring session with Emerald (and subsequently taking a shower), he had been all but dragged by Neo to what, to him, appeared to be a high end clothing store in the local mall.

 _"We'll get you a few sets of T-Shirts and sweat pants for you to sleep and train in, but I refuse to let you go out in public looking any less stylish than Mercury or Emerald... And preferably more. So unless you plan on copying Mercury's tracksuit, you're getting a collared shirt and a coat."_

"Okay, _Mom._ "

Bickering aside, Lee actually did appreciate the style Neo was attempting to get him in to; while it was certainly different than what he was used to, he couldn't deny that the employees of this particular store looked good wearing the merchandise. And he had no doubt that he himself would probably look good too, especially with Neo providing a feminine opinion on his selections. But he still didn't want to go through the process that every female on Earth seemed to enjoy, of trying on half the store to find the right combination of colors, size, and style before leaving with maybe two complete outfits.

 _'Oh well. May as well get this over with...'_

* * *

Several hours later, Lee and Neo finally left the shop, the former wearing a brand new outfit and carrying a few bags containing about a week's worth of similar garments. To both complement his eyes and make a play on his name (Neo had insisted, and seeing as she was paying, he couldn't really argue), each of his shirts were two toned, with one dark shade of blue and one lighter shade, both reminiscent of the sky at different times of the day; half of them were long sleeved, while half had short sleeves, and he was currently wearing the latter. Over this he wore a jade green clip-on tie, also clipped to the front of the shirt to prevent it from flying in the wind (the tie clip, of course, was cerulean). He also wore black pants and belt, the same boots he was already wearing (even Neo hadn't been able to find a decent pair there), and dark blue socks. All of it made with dust-treated fibers that would provide it with some resistance to wear, tear, and the elements. What had left Cerulean the most in awe, however, was the watch that seemed to very nearly complete the outfit.

The Citizen brand quartz wristwatch with sterling silver band and some 18-carat gold accents, had belonged to Lee before arriving on Remnant. While not the most expensive wristwatch ever produced, it most certainly had not been cheap at the time he'd purchased it, and it was the only thing he owned that had not been either left behind on Earth or mutilated since arriving, making it his most valuable possession. Neo had presented it to him after they'd decided on his outfit, mentioning that Cinder had taken it to a watchmaker in order to have it repaired; apparently, the interior workings had been damaged either in the crash or the fight in which he'd met Cinder. And it would also appear that Cinder was kinder than she had seemed earlier... Either way, Lee was just glad to have it returned to him, for which he had thanked Neo and made a mental note to make sure to thank Cinder as well. In the mean time, however...

"Neo, I'm grateful for everything you've done for me so far, but I'm drawing the line! I am _not_ going to wear a scarf and fedora!"

The diminutive fashionista still only considered him to be casually dressed. Which, compared to her, he'd readily admit that he was, but it was still more than enough to be considered appropriately dressed; compared to the average teenager wandering around the mall, he was practically formal!

 _"Awe but Leeeee! You'd look so handsome if you wore those with that coat I wanted to get you!"_

"No means no! We're trying to make me look respectable, not like some pimp or mobster! What heterosexual man even wears a white coat and a feathered fedora nowadays? Seriously, Neo, I thought you had better fashion sense than that! Next thing I know, you'll be wanting me to wear make up and dye my hair orange! Maybe carry around a cane?" **(A/N: Shots fired. xD)**

.

..

...

"Oh dear God, you have got to be kidding m- Really, Neo?! I am _not_ a dress up doll!"

A quiet _"giggle"_ was all the response Lee got as they began to make their way towards the exit... Though he could have sworn that he saw a light flush to her cheeks... _Focus..._

 _'Yup, she's blushing. Jeez... Don't know if I should be flattered or offended by that...'_

Lee spent a few more moments pondering that as they walked along, but decided to just shrug it off for now; he could always tease her about it later. But, then again... why let such a perfect opportunity go to waste?

"So... It's getting kind of late. You wanna go grab lunch? Maybe see a movie?"

Lee's instincts were proven correct, as a quick glance down to his companion... _Focus..._ revealed her blush becoming more prominent.

 _"My, my, Lee, so bold. Are you asking me out on a date?"_

Lee didn't even break stride. "Only if you're paying, my dear."

Neo's stride... Faltered. As did the coquettish grin she was wearing.

 _"Oh yeah... You're broke."_

Lee chortled like a maniac. "No need to sound so disappointed. After all, I do owe you at least one nice date after you just bought me a full wardrobe. Soon as I'm making my own money, it'll be you, me, and the nicest restaurant I can afford without going broke again! What do ya say, my dear?"

Neo winked coquettishly at him. _"I'll hold you to that, handsome."_

This time, it was Lee's turn to falter, nearly tripping over his bags in the process before he recovered. A charming smile making its' way to his lips.

"I'll be anxiously awaiting the day you do, beautiful. But in the meantime, well, I am kind of hungry..?"

 _"Yeah, yeah, we can stop and get something to eat on the way back. I'll even pay for you, you worthless bum."_

"Yay! Free food!"

 _"So shameless..."_

* * *

After one more stop (this time to Dust-Mart, in order to pick up some sleep/training clothes as well as personal hygiene items) and about an hour later, the two friends found themselves seated at a casual restaurant, sipping away at their beverages and making idle conversation while they awaited the main course. At least until something occurred to Lee.

"You know, with how easily you're able to speak with me, I had forgotten that you can't really talk to other people all that often. That's gotta be rough."

Neo, for once, let out an audible sigh, somewhat surprising Lee, before she brightened up.

 _"You have no idea...But that's okay; I have you now."_

Well... If she didn't want to talk about it, Lee wasn't going to force her to quite yet. Especially while she was being so chipper about it.

"So... You teach me badass martial arts moves and all I have to do for you in return is be your friend slash interpreter? I think I can live with that."

Small smiles adorned both their faces at the humorously spoken comment, but did nothing to take away from the sentiment.

"You know, I can't decide if this is sad or just plain lucky."

 _"What do you mean?"_

"We're kind of best friends by default, hon."

 _"Oh, yeah, I see what you mean; you're the only one of my associates I can physically speak t-"_

Lee took the opportunity to interrupt. "Telepathically."

 _"... **Fine** , smart ass. You're the only other person I can **telepathically** speak to on a regular basis, which in turn is leading me to interact with you the most out of everyone I know, especially since Emerald and Mercury are already all but joined at the hip most days and Cinder is hardly ever around unless she's either supervising our training or giving us orders. If I had to choose, I'd say lucky."_

"I don't disagree, but why?" He felt like he had an idea of what she would say, but he didn't think it could hurt to confirm.

 _"Well, from your side of things, you could have died, either back on Earth or when you tried to help Cinder."_

"Staying alive _is_ always a positive."

 _"And if you had, I would have missed out on the opportunity to meet you and regularly have actual conversations, rather than constantly having to play charades or resort to my scroll every time I want to communicate with someone else. And it certainly helps that you're not a half-bad conversationalist."_

Lee grinned at her. "Really? It's kind of funny you would say that seeing as I was always the quiet one back home. I really didn't have more than a few close friends because of it."

Neo mirrored the expression. _"Somehow I find that hard to believe, Mr. Forthcoming."_

Eyes were rolled. "I'm not saying that I'm usually a boring person! Quite the contrary, if I may say so myself! I just wasn't overly social outside of a small group, you know?"

 _"You certainly fooled me."_

"Did I ever mention that I was an actor in high school? A rather mediocre one, I'll admit, but I dabbled."

Neo scoffed. _"Oh, shut up. I may have only known you for about twenty-four hours now but I **know** that you know that what I'm **really** asking is why are you able to speak so freely to us if you're actually so shy?"_

"Even including Cinder, that's still small enough to count as a _small_ group, Neo."

 _"Ass. I know that, but you've literally known us for about a day now. There's no way you're just suddenly that confident."_

"There so is. A few different reasons, if you really want me to break it down for you."

 _"Do tell."_

"First, I woke up suddenly much stronger and more physically fit than I used to be; I wasn't exactly scrawny back on Earth, but suddenly being this size and finding out that I have the potential to wipe the floor with people the size of a sumo wrestler most certainly served as a confident booster. Second, you guys are literally the only four people I know right now. Even if I wanted to be, I can't afford to just be quiet and observe; that works when I have a reliable knowledge base to draw from in order to supplement what I'm observing, but when I'm thrown into something brand new I learn best by fully engaging. Asking questions and such. And finally... While Merc and Emerald seem to have personality types that are bound to get on my nerves at some point in one way or another, they still seem pretty affable. And it certainly helps that you yourself are very easy to talk to."

 _"I **have** been told that I'm a good listener."_

"And not just because you're a mute! Which reminds me that by all rights _I_ should be the one asking you why _you_ can speak so naturally."

 _"Meh. Like you said, I'm mute, not deaf; I may not speak, but I watch and I listen. But most importantly, I learn... In this case, that overly bubbly excitement towards someone you just met is usually off-putting."_

Something about that statement just seemed... Sad. "You speaking from experience?"

 _"Maybe..."_

"Well," Lee began with a smile, "Regardless of how things have gone for you before, you're doing just fine with me. Beauty, money, and a winning personality? Careful, Neo, or you might just force me to fall for you!" That smile _may_ have become more of a smirk with that additional remark, but it was worth it to see the answering smirk.

 _"Yeah, right after you get over the fact that you're supposedly twenty-two and I'm only seventeen."_

Scratch that thought. Abort mission, abort mission! "Which puts you below the age of consent where I come from. That's literally one intimate moment away from automatically being registered as a sex offender. And potentially tried for statutory rape, if it's an _intimate_ moment."

 _"It's the same here... Except that the magic number is 16. Unless you're in Vacuo; theirs is 14."_

"...That's barbaric."

 _"The average life expectancy in Vacuo is also lower than the other kingdoms. Harsh climate, high crime, Grimm, etcetera."_

"Still... 14?"

 _"Yup. But we're not in Vacuo, so you won't have to worry about any 14 year old girls propositioning you."_

Somehow, Lee wasn't reassured. "No, instead I just get to deal with an ice cream obsessed midget. And while she probably won't proposition me, she'll certainly have fun teasing me with it now that she knows that the thought bothers me."

 _"You don't know that."_

"You know it's true."

 _"Who knows? You're easy enough on the eyes; maybe the totally awesome fun-sized girl would be serious when she did."_

The spit take that followed that line was nothing short of magnificent; it was a shame that the perfectly formed arc of Bev-Cola couldn't be captured for posterity. But at least it would live on in the minds of all those who were fortunate enough to witness it, including a certain giggling, ice cream ob- _awesome, fun-sized girl._

"That's exactly what I was talking about..."

* * *

 _Our food arrived shortly after that, so the conversation was quickly steered towards more mundane things, such as sports, the world's apparent color naming rule, and the leader of the White Fang stepping down and being replaced with someone new. Which I would later find out wasn't exactly mundane, but to a guy who had just woken up in a strange new world the day before, that didn't even count as news... Even if I had been here two years ago when it was new. But over the following months, it would quickly become apparent that this was a bigger deal than it had seemed. While we would eventually become caught up in the very center of the White Fang's actions in Vale, I myself was nowhere near ready to be getting involved. Sure, I was properly quartered and clothed now, and was beginning to learn about this world, but if I was to be of any use to Cinder and not simply be a leech, I needed to learn how to properly fight, and eventually be able to stand toe to toe with the very best. So, after several months of training and simply integrating myself into their daily lives, Cinder decided it was time to send me on a proper mission..._


	7. Chapter 5: Networking Part 1

**This chapter, I will begin to add time stamps to the beginning of each new arc, in the format of how long it's been since Lee awoke on Remnant. For example, Y: +2 M: +3: D: +4 would be 2 years, 3 months, and 4 days since the events of Chapter 1. Also, the genre has officially been updated from Adventure to Drama.**

* * *

 **Volume 1**

 **Chapter 5**

 **Networking**

 **Part 1**

 _The White Fang: a Faunas rights group that started out peaceful, before turning to more belligerent methods, which would eventually escalate into outright terrorism. When I first arrived on Remnant, they were still a mostly peaceful group, only just beginning to make the transition to violent extremism. And to be honest, I really couldn't blame them. I had barely been on Remnant for a few months and I could already tell that they were considered second-class citizens at best, outlaws at worst, and for what? Having the "misfortune" to be born with animal appendages, heightened senses, and the ability to see in the dark? Sounds like a classic case of jealousy to me. If you ask me, humans should have been embracing the faunas, and over time intermingling to better the species as a whole... But I suppose that's transhuman eugenics, which itself is a very morally grey field, which I see no need to go into here. My point is, the crux of the matter is that society on Remnant was_ _ **corrupt**_ _at the most basic level... And apart from the White Fang and a few vocal minorities, nobody seemed to care enough to change that. So I really didn't feel any sort of guilt when Cinder told us we were going to be robbing a business owner who refused to serve Faunas..._

* * *

 **M: +4 D+16**

 **Evening**

"Wow. I know humans can be racist, xenophobic bastards, but I've never heard of a business actually refusing to serve paying customers. Exploit groups they consider undesirable and make them pay more perhaps, but outright refusal? Damn..."

Caerulean was currently lounging at a table on the patio of a small cafe, sipping at a cup of tea whilst on a video call with Cinder via scroll. He had just watched a young, wild maned man with a lion's tail be bodily thrown from the premises of a club, having apparently not realized the place was an anti-Faunas establishment. And he hadn't even really done anything to warrant the rough treatment, either; he'd waited patiently in the line, which was made up of similarly clothed humans, made it all the way to the front with no incident, and then been set upon by the bouncers in less than thirty seconds. All while the humans behind him either laughed or watched on indifferently. Lee felt bad for the guy, but more importantly, disgust towards his own species.

"I take it you have no objection towards appropriating some of their assets, then?"

Mostly green eyes met amber as they settled into a serious expression, leaving no room for his boss to doubt his willingness to proceed. "No, ma'am. I'm ready to get this show on the road." A brief pause as he glanced across the small two-person table to lock eyes with his partner, who nodded. "Neo is too."

"Good. But we are still ahead of schedule. Wait until Emerald and Mercury make their move, then stick to the plan; you both know what to do."

"Aye ma'am. Team Blue Moon out."

A raise of the brow was all he got out of Cinder before the connection was terminated from her end, causing him to sigh before turning his attention to his partner... Who was looking at him like he was crazy. Which, while a common occurrence, was just the least bit disappointing in this instance.

"You know... Because cerulean is a shade of blue and neapolitan is a flavor of ice cream?"

 _"I still don't follow."_

Lee sighed. "...You've never had Blue Moon ice cream, have you?"

And on that day, The Lord said: "Let there be light!" and there was light in Neo's eyes.

 _"Oh! That! I saw it in at this little ice cream parlor in Mistral once but I ended up going with red velvet that time! So... No."_

"Oh. Well, I haven't either, but at least that makes sense now, right?"

Neo shrugged before sipping her latte. _"Sure, but if we're coming up with clever team names, Team Leo seems like it'd make just a little bit more."_

Lee froze mid sip, eyes widened in momentary shock as he processed the suggestion.

 _"I take it you never thought of that."_

"Nooo," Lee began, dragging out the 'o,' "... But that sounds too much like 'Neo', if you ask me. And 'Lee', for that matter."

 _"That's kind of the point though."_

"Too easily confused."

 _"You're just jealous you didn't think of that first."_

"Am not! Besides, that also sounds more like a ship name!"

 _"What, and Blue Moon doesn't?!"_

"Nope!"

 _"Does too!"_

"Does not!"

 _"Uh huh!"_

"Nuh uhhhh okay, yeah, it does. I guess I'll just leave team naming to the combat academies." Lee was just grateful Neo hadn't decided to tease him about the shipping comment; it was bad enough that he was already the victim of some universe-breaking story-book protagonist shenanigans to drop him into this world. The last thing he wanted was for it to go a step further and have in-universe references to said situation, lest he begin to lose his sanity... Wait. He was partnered with a telepathic, heterochromatic, ice cream obsessed midget... And about to rob a night club. With said telepathic, heterochromatic, ice cream obsessed midget. It was a safe guess that sanity was not on the list of things Lee had going on for him right now.

With a sigh, Lee turned away from his partner to look back to the club; the lion Faunas had left by now, but towards the back of the line of people waiting to get in he could see Mercury and Emerald... The latter wearing heels and a tight skirt the color of her name.

 _Stealth pun. Nice._

He would make sure to comment on it later, if only for the rise he'd end up getting out of her. In the mean time, it was his job to keep an eye on the Black Gem (okay, so maybe he wasn't _completely_ done naming things) until they made it inside. His part of the plan wouldn't begin until that happened. But... that didn't mean he and Neo couldn't review said plan while they waited.

"So... tell me again why Merc and Em are standing in line instead of just sneaking in?"

 _"Because Cinder wants them to be noted by the club's security as patrons; if they get caught somewhere they aren't supposed to, they can pretend they just got lost looking for a private place to... You know."_

Lee scoffed. "That'll be the day... But seriously; _Mercury_ being forced to stand in a line?"

As lazy as Merc could be in the morning, it had barely taken Lee a week to realize that Merc absolutely _hates_ waiting. With every fiber of his being. Be it something as small as waiting for someone to finish using the toilet, or short as waiting for a song to download to his mp3, Merc simply could not wait without opening his mouth to complain about it. So it was astonishing to Lee that the first phase of their plan would involve Merc waiting in line for something, when they could have just as easily just snuck into the place. Not that he was completely incapable of waiting... But it was practically a given that he would end up making a scene about it and drawing attention to himself.

Neo, far more acquainted with Merc than Lee himself was, could only shrug. _"I'm honestly just as skeptical as you are, Lee. But that's the way Cinder wants to do this... Besides, he seems to be doing fine right now."_

"Only because he's busy staring at her legs whenever she isn't looking." Which Lee honestly did find frustrating, since while Emerald was certainly an attractive woman, her usual attire revealed much more skin than what she was currently leaving uncovered. And she tended to wear shorts both to sleep and work out in, and she shared a room with Mercury, so it wasn't as if getting to see her legs was such a special occurrence either. So yes, they were a set of nicely shaped legs, and most certainly warranted a certain level of appreciation... but having lived in close proximity with her for more than four months now, Lee was pretty much immune to being affected by Emerald showing skin, even if it _did_ look smooth and creamy enough to be molten chocolate.. _._

Okay, so maybe he wasn't quite _immune._ But at least he didn't feel the need to stare every time she looked away, and Mercury really shouldn't have either, considering he'd been partnered up with her for about two years now.

 _"~Somebody sounds jealous!~"_

Lee gratefully tore his gaze away and turned to face his partner at the singsonged jape, suspicions confirmed when he saw the lazy smirk taking up half her face; she was just as bored as he was. Well, okay, he could handle that.

"Sounds more like somebody else is jealous that the first somebody _might_ be jealous... Which he isn't." Lee's smirk matched Neo's... which didn't falter.

 _"As if. I was just worried that my sidekick might have bad taste."_

Lee rolled his eyes; such a casual insult, and not even directed at himself that time. "Be still, my beating heart," he monotoned in order to convey the sarcasm... while simultaneously leaving the question of whether he was referring to Emerald or Neo herself. Either way, _BURN!_

Neo rightfully chose to interpret that statement to be directed at her, recoiling as if struck while placing a hand each to her heart and over her mouth. _"Oh, how my heart breaks at thy cruel words! That thee would willfully wound me so!"_

Lee's smirk just grew wider. "I wasn't aware that you even _have_ a heart to break."

 _" Ouch."_

Cue the chuckles as both laughed at the conclusion of their little game.

"Seriously though," Lee began as the two simmered down, "I can't believe that we're hinging _anything_ on Mercury waiting in a line."

 _"Speaking of, they've finally reached the front of it. Shall we go?"_

Lee took one look at Neo's outstretched hand and shuddered, before plastering on the brightest fake smile he could muster. "Couldn't we enter via a more... conventional, method? We _are_ pretty swanky, strolling through the front door would be pretty easy!"

A fiendish giggle was her response, in turn prompting Lee to sigh in resignation while taking the proffered hand. _"All aboard!"_

"Chup me..."

* * *

 _Before we continue, let us keep the record clear: even after the better part of a decade, I still hate traveling via Neo's semblance, the side effects are that bad. In my universe, there was a popular book series that featured an ability much like Neo's, and it could be used by pretty much anyone above the age of 16 so long as they had a license. Despite this, the average person still preferred to use slower, less convenient, and more inefficient methods of travel. Why? Well, to quote the series' protagonist, it felt a lot like being __"forced through a very tight rubber tube." As apt a description as that is, it is also a severe understatement when applied to Neo's particular permutation of this phenomenon. In the story I mentioned, the average person would say that teleporting felt like having iron bands tightened around your chest, your eyes forced back into your skull, you ear drums forced deeper into your head. If it was their first time, they probably vomited as well. What that story didn't mention is that that was the easy part; were the uncomfortable feeling of being compressed the only issue, then I wouldn't have complained so much._

 _When you toss a ball, it rises, and then it falls. When you pull on opposite ends of a rubber band, then let go, it snaps inwards. And when you compress multiple dozens of pounds of person into a point small enough to break the laws of space and time, then let it go... yeah. Because it's her own semblance, Neo's aura and body are able to compensate for the worst of it, leaving her with the rubber tube experience. To anybody unfortunate enough to be brought along as a passenger, though? It doesn't matter how ironclad your stomach and esophagus are, at the very least you'll be parting with a mouthful of whatever you last ate. And that's if you're used to it. I was... but only because we had practiced for a whole week beforehand. Fortunately, no strategy of Cinder's is executed without tactics in place to contend with known variables, and this one was no different..._

* * *

"I hate you _so_ much right now..."

Neo rolled her eyes with a knowing smirk before ironically blowing him a kiss... which he just barely caught in the corner of his eye, while his face was hovering just above the lip of the wash basin.

"Whatever... Just, go grab me a mook, will ya? I need to get changed and into position before Cinder shows up."

Again with the fiendish giggle, before Neo disappeared, leaving a _fwoosh_ like sound in her wake as the air in the small employee's restroom rushed to fill the vacuum left by her sudden disappearance. Just half a year ago, Lee would have wasted time looking around the room, trying to process that he was now in a small employee restroom in the back of a nightclub, instead of the patio across the street he'd been perched on just a couple of minutes ago.

Lee was no longer that man.

As soon as Neo left, Lee reached into the pockets of his coat, pulling out his weapons: a deceptively simple looking pair of scaled gauntlets. They _looked_ a lot like your standard set of medieval plate... except that, rather than the grey or black one might have expected from such pieces of armor, they were two toned in, you guessed it, blue. They were also much thinner than one might expect, due to the outer layer being made of titanium, with a layer of lead beneath them so they still added some weight to his punches. Of course, that wasn't _all_ there was to them... But Lee didn't have time to marvel over his own ingenuity at designing them. With a smirk, he simply put them on before turning around to wait.

It didn't take long. One moment, Lee was flexing his hands, and in the next, time seemingly slowed to a crawl as a mook in a black suit and red sunglasses appeared in front of him with a pop, arm extended in the middle of rolling his shoulder. Behind him, Lee could _just_ see Neo with her palm placed in the middle of his back. Her predatory smirk, his look of absolute shock, the lead-plated fist with 175 pounds of body weight all being torqued into the fist flying towards his temple... The mook was unconscious before he even hit the ground.

Off to the side, a Polaroid-like camera produced a print, the sound of which caused Lee to stare at it incredulously.

 _"Nice punch."_

Lee could only gape.

 _"What? Use your words, Lee."_

"When did you even have time to set that up?!"

 _"While you were rinsing your mouth out, duh. It wasn't difficult to rig a tripwire to the camera button."_

Lee frowned. "In less than sixty seconds?"

 _"Like I said, it wasn't difficult."_

.

..

...

"Did you at least get a nice shot?"

 _"See for yourself!"_

A happily grinning Neo handed the print over to an amused Lee... who joined Neo in grinning like a maniac when he saw the shot. The camera had gone off at the exact moment Lee's fist had made contact with the mook's face, which was slightly chubby. Combine the visible jiggle from the impact with the completely oblivious expression on his face, as well as the mirror smirks on Lee's and Neo's... That was definitely one for the photo album.

"Okay, that was pretty awesome, but we've still got work to do. Put that somewhere safe, then help me strip this guy..."

* * *

 _At the time, I could not help but marvel at what I was doing; my first less-than-legal mission, yet everything was going smoothly. If I was a more paranoid person, I might have even said things were going too smoothly... But they really weren't; Cinder, despite being overly cultured and aloof, really did plan meticulously, accounting for every small detail. From the vomit inducing torture session of acquainting myself with Neo's instantaneous translocation, to having Merc pretend to get drunk and get dragged out back to fight a couple of the mooks, the plan was pure genius; it went off without a hitch. Merc and I each replaced a mook with none the wiser, while Neo moved them to an out of the way location and Emerald continued to move around The Club, looking for all the world like an average girl looking to party. The infiltration phase of this mission had gone perfectly. All we had to do then was wait for Cinder herself to arrive for the negotiations..._

* * *

 ** _Phew! Took me a few weeks, but I finally cranked out another chapter! Believe it or not, they were originally going to steal something like the Golden Jubilee Diamond... But then, that'd be way too difficult for a debut mission, huh? Not to mention it would pretty much confirm that Remnant is the future of our version of Earth, and Lee is supposed to be pretty unclear as to whether that's the case or if this is a completely different universe altogether. So I figured I'd downgrade to what's basically strong-arming, remaining relevant to the actual plot, and all with the added bonus of getting to reveal Lee's weapons in the process. Anyway, that's the end of my little mini rant. As always, reviews are encouraged!_**

 ** _Oh, almost forgot: if any of you who are artistically inclined would be willing to take a stab at it, I would love it if somebody could draw/render a cover image for this story! PM me if interested, all half-decent attempts will be rewarded with an OC of your choice making a cameo in the story at some point, while the winner(s) OC will become a major recurring character!_**

 ** _-CS_**

 ** _*PS: It seems I forgot I was writing a T rated story, and dropped an unnecessary F-bomb. Henceforth, I will try to limit myself to no more than one F-Bomb per character, per arc. In it's place, I've substituted a similar word, Chup. For those of you who aren't Sci-Fi nerds, that comes from Defiance ^_^_**


	8. Chapter 6: Networking Part 2

**I've gotta say, getting such a strong response in the form of favs, follows, and reviews is an AMAZING motivator to keep on writing; I literally started, finished, and edited this chapter over the course of today, simply because I was proud that I'm writing something that other people enjoy to read. So thank you all, and for being so amazing, here's a new chapter at least a couple of days earlier than I expected! :D**

* * *

 **Volume 1**

 **Chapter 6**

 **Networking**

 **Part 2**

 _The Axe Gang of Vale was a relatively infamous group back during those days; in the years following our visit to their club and lair, not so much. By the time of the Vytal festival at Beacon, the Axe Gang's reputation had largely diminished to that of mooks... But it pays to have friends in low places, and while a large swath of Hei Xiong's empire was comprised of untalented mooks, a few of the more competent were capable of compiling all of the rumors and hearsay, and loyal enough to report it up the chain of command, resulting in Junior becoming the best information broker in Vale, no ifs, ands, or buts about it. Back when I first met him, however, he was still just a lieutenant, not even his boss's right hand man..._

* * *

"How do I look?"

Lee was currently sporting a black suit, with matching fedora, shoes, and gloves, as well as a red tie and sunglasses. Neo, currently busy washing her hands in the sink, paused to look over at him, thoughtful expression in place; Lee braced himself for an insult.

 _"You look like a cheap thug."_

"In other words, perfect." Lee sighed; it was the insult he expected, but she also was not wrong; they _wanted_ him to look like just another Axe Gang mook. Which just so happened to mean he also looked like a cheap thug.

"Good... I suppose I'd better go find Merc and Em then. You need a hand with anything before I go?"

A blank stare was all he received to that question.

"Excuse me for being polite."

Neo actually smiled then, before turning to look at the unconscious goon. The briefest flash of a grin followed, before she daintily stepped over to his prone form and placed a booted foot on the small of his back.

 _"See you in a bit!"_

Lee simply shuddered while turning around himself; whatever Neo planned on doing with the guy, he didn't even want to think about how humiliated he would be upon waking; better him than Lee. A quick _fwoosh_ signified that Neo had left, taking both the goon and the clothes Lee had been wearing before. The latter back home for him to change into later, the former to Neo knows where...

Lee quickly shook that thought; it wouldn't do to be distracted on a mission like this, undercover in the lair of the beast... Or, more aptly, in the Bear's Den. Either way, distraction could easily prove fatal, so Lee did his best to merely focus on the mission... which required him to leave the restroom right about then. Preferably with the ear piece that was currently in his pocket, actually in his ear. Lee started setting the ear piece up while he walked.

.

..

...

"Messenger, Gem: this is Sky. Come in. Over."

 _"Sky: Gem. What took you so long? Over."_

 _"Sky: Messenger. Seriously, man, the hell? Over."_

Behind the red lenses, Lee winced; he was hoping they hadn't noticed.

"Messenger, Gem: Sky. Get bent, I'm barely a minute behind. You want to know why, you can ask Soft Serve when we're done. Over."

Quiet snickers could be heard over the line as Messenger and Gem, or, rather, _Mercury and Emerald_ , processed just what exactly Lee had just said.

 _"Sky: Messenger. Really? Soft Serve? You know you'll never hear the end of it if we stick with that. Over."_

"Messenger: Sky. Again, get bent; if you come up with a better idea, let me know. Over."

 _"Messenger, Sky: Gem. Alright, boys, let's settle down. As... Entertaining as that conversation will probably be, let's try to stay focused, alright? Radio silence from this point on, unless it's pertinent to the mission. Over."_

 _"Messenger copies. Over and out."_

"Sky acknowledges. Over and out."

Now that he'd checked in, Mercury and Emerald would begin moving towards their positions. As experienced as they were, even at the tender age of 16, Cinder had not been worried in the slightest as to their capability to subtly move through the crowd without raising suspicion, so Lee felt no reason to worried either. However, he himself was a novice, and while the path to his position was mercifully simple compared to either of his two teammates _('Thank you, Neo!)_ , he still had to pass through the DJ booth, without the DJ realizing he wasn't the mook he appeared to be. Granted, it should be relatively simple, seeing as the DJ should be busy, well, disc jockeying, which thus meant that the odds of him looking away for more than a brief glance were slim; combined with the bear's head mask that he allegedly wore on the job, that meant that he shouldn't be able to identify him with such a small window of opportunity. Still, if he happened to _know_ all the mooks by name, and could reliably identify their voices too? Lee was just going to have to hope a grunt would suffice.

.

..

...

It did. Lee had walked into the booth from the rear (which led to storage and all the employee-only facilities, such as the restroom Lee had teleported in to), and taken a right out onto the walkway, having not even been noticed by D.J. Deadbe4, who did in fact wear a cartoon bear head on the job. Crazy bastard. But with that minor obstacle out of the way, Lee's path to his post was now clear... And short. His post was literally just immediately below the DJ's booth, on the landing the stairs led to, on the left side of the room if looking from the main entrance.

"Messenger, Gem: Sky. In position."

 _"Copy." "Acknowledged."_

Lee sighed; he may have gotten the easy part in this plan, but it also meant it was the _boring_ part: a whole lot of waiting. He had to wait for Emerald and Mercury to reach theirs, then he had to wait for Cinder to arrive... _(Ugh. I'm starting to sound like Merc)._

The next hour or so passed uneventfully; any other patrons who might have wanted to start a commotion were discouraged by Mercury's earlier show, so he didn't have to worry about pretending to be on over watch for the Axe Gang, while Merc and Emerald had reached their own respective positions down on the main floor without incident, so he wasn't really having to play over watch for his own side at the moment either; he'd spent about 20 of those minutes simply browsing The Archive (Remnant's version of the Internet). Currently, he was reading an article about The Tale of The Four Maidens. Basically a fairy tale talking about the four seasons and how they came into being... Interesting reading, in Lee's opinion, but it was approaching the time Cinder was due to show up, so he simply bookmarked the page for later reading before stowing his scroll back into his pocket. Eyes were turned out towards the main entrance.

A few minutes later...

"Messenger, Gem: Sky. The Queen has entered the den."

 _"Copy.""Roger."_

With that brusque exchange, Lee's mind was fully back on the mission, and his eyes watching Cinder as she strolled directly to the bar, where she seemed to order a glass of red wine before being approached by an absolute bear of a man, who must have stood right around seven feet tall (at this distance, Lee was just guessing, using Cinder's known height of 5'11" in her heels as a reference) and had dark brown (but not dark enough to be called black) hair, with matching full mustache and wild beard. The button up shirt and vest did little to conceal his broad, muscular build.

Lee would _still_ place his money on Cinder if the two were to get into a fight. Of course, that didn't say much since he would bet on Cinder over just about any single combatant... But the man was not alone. Approaching from the other side, another man joined them, who looked remarkably like the other man, and of similar height, but with black hair and a much tamer beard. Which would make those two Da Hui Xiong and Hei Xiong, respectively.

"Messenger, Gem: Sky. I've got eyes on Grizzly Bear and Black Bear, but no sign of Polar Bear. Over."

 _"Sky: Gem. Copy, just keep an eye out for him. Messenger and I have eyes on the bar now as well, we'll let you know if anything changes. Over."_

"Gem: Sky. Copy that. Over."

With a frown, Lee tore his gaze away from the bar, and began to scan the rest of the club, looking for the illusive head of white hair on an absolute bear of a man... Neo was never going to let him hear the end of it if he managed to approach Cinder and Co. without Lee spotting the man first. Because he should have stuck out like a sore thumb!

.

..

...

Still nothing, and Lee had scanned every visible person in the place thoroughly to make sure that they weren't The Polar Bear in disguise... but still, nothing.

"Messenger, Gem: Sky. I still have no joy on Polar Bear. Either he's not here or he's just not out there on the floor. What's the situation down there? Over."

 _"Sky: Messenger. Looks like it's going to be a fight; The Bears are tensing up. Over."_

 _"Sky: Gem. Stop searching for the Polar Bear and keep your eyes down here; Messenger is right, this is about to get violent. Over."_

"Gem, Messenger: Sky. Copy that. Over and out."

With that, Lee brought his attention back towards the bar... Where he could see for himself what his team mates had been talking about; Da Hui and Hei seemed to be bristling, and a swarm of mooks were now circling Cinder. If Lee had to guess, Cinder had just made some sort of threat, and the two Xiongs hadn't taken kindly to it. Lee surreptitiously fished his gloves out of his jacket, and had them on and secured just in time for the Black Bear, Hei, to grab Cinder roughly by the arm.

 **"Aiiiiieeee!"**

In little over a second, the man was on the ground, howling over the music as he clutched his badly burnt hand. In the following ten seconds, several things happened:

The DJ, startled by the loud sound, jumped, causing the records to come off of the turn tables and the music to stop with an ungodly sound.

The patrons of the club, startled twice now, cast their eyes around for the source of the commotion, and upon seeing most of the club's bouncers surrounding a single woman, with weapons drawn, didn't look twice and fled the scene, stampeding en masse out the front door.

While that happened, the Brown Bear took a swing with what appeared to be an unholy combination of a maul and a chain gun. Cinder blocked the attack with conjured swords, but was sent flying out of the circle. Most of the mooks followed her out onto the recently vacated dance floor... but one remained behind. Grinning, he tossed his coat and shades to the side before rushing at Da Hui Xiong, whom, to his credit, saw Mercury coming and was successfully able to defend himself from Mercury, though their battle quickly took them away from the bar and towards the steps leading up to Lee's position.

Lee, recognizing the opportunity presented by Mercury, began to cautiously make his way down the steps, creeping up on the unsuspecting Da Hui, shedding his jacket while he did. While he approached, he also took the opportunity to really _watch_ the fight between the two; Mercury, as a result of his kick-based fighting style, tended to be a highly technical fighter. Da Hui, on the other hand, was very much a battering ram, a little slower than your average aura-trained fighter but his massive size and colossal strength more than compensating for it. The resulting match up was thus relatively even... But beyond that, Lee's eyes were capturing every move the two made, his mind both committing it all to memory to review later and formulating a strategy for how to take the big bear dow-

There!

Da Hui, who had seen a mook with axe drawn coming down the stairs, spun to the side to allow the mook to attempt an ambush against Mercury... But that was no mook.

"Surprise, motherfucker!"

For Lee, time had once again seemed to slow to a crawl when Da Hui began his spin. Sounds were more distinct, images crisper and clearer, colors more defined. When Lee leaped, he had the Axe Gang's eponymous weapon drawn behind him, as if to bring it down in an over hand blow. He was most of the way there when Da Hui saw him, and raised the haft/barrel of his monstrous weapon to block the attack... But what Da Hui had seen did not match reality. Lee had leapt, but rather than hefting a pistol-axe, it was Lee's fist that was drawn back to strike. Thus, Lee's lead weighted, titanium plated knuckles completely passed Da Hui's guard, raised to catch an axe haft, and slammed directly into his patella.

For the second time that day, a Xiong screamed as he was injured, in this case due to a broken knee cap. But to Lee's ears, the scream quickly morphed into one of rage, and Da Hui rather quickly proved him correct; while he was down, he was far from out, and with a sweep of the chain gun maul both Lee and Mercury were forced to abandon any attempt at a follow up attack and jump back out of the way. Unfortunately, that was exactly what the bear wanted, for even as he made the attack, the weapon began to transform, all of which Lee was _still_ experiencing in slow motion. It was the only reason he had time to see that it would transform in time for Da Hui to fire before having to correct the trajectory. And while Lee and Mercury both had better than average capacity for aura... He was not keen on testing just how many 50 caliber rounds it would take before one managed to break through. So when Lee landed, he rushed forward and executed a baseball slide, while at the edge of his vision he saw Mercury forced to roll to the side, out of the chain gun's line of fire. Both of them managed to avoid the majority of the fire, though Lee did feel the impacts of a couple of bullets grazing off of him. However, he was in prime position to unleash one of his glove's surprises.

 **"Shoryuken!"**

With a concentrated application of Aura, Lee ignited a pocket of Burn Dust that had been stored in his right hand glove, and sprang out of his slide into a leaping uppercut, which landed clean under Da Hui's chin, and actually succeeded in lifting him a few inches up into the air before he fell back, knocked senseless from the blow. Lee took a moment to make sure Da Hui wasn't getting back up, and once he was sure...

"Hell yes!" Time resumed it's normal pace, and Lee pumped his fist. The battle was far from over, however, as Cinder was still fighting a large number of goons.

"Lee!" Lee turned his attention from the dance floor back to his temporary partner, who was pointing up towards the D.J.'s booth, where Deadbe4 was firing down onto the dance floor with what appeared to be a Tommy gun.

"I'm on i-"

All fighting stopped when the front doors were sent flying off their hinges, straight into the mosh pit that the dance floor had become. Most of the mooks were able to dodge it, as was Cinder, but an unfortunate few were hit with the heavy wood doors, crushing them underneath. All eyes turned to where the doors should have been... and Lee was met with the sight of the biggest, scariest man he had _ever_ seen. Standing around 7'2'' and wielding a pair of full sized war hammers as if they weighed no more than broom sticks, Beiji Xiong had just entered the building. And he was _not_ happy.

In unison, three mouths uttered: "Oh _shit_..."

* * *

 **And there we have the full functionality (though perhaps not the full capability) of his weapons revealed, as well as what appears to be his semblance. I'll explain it more in either the next chapter or the arc's conclusion, depending on whether or not the action is resolved quickly or not, but for now, the whole wibbly wobbly timey wimey stuff going on there is part of his semblance. Also, I apologize for the one liners, but as an (exaggerated) self insert, Lee's gotta do and say what I would do, assuming it occurs to me, and I would take the opportunities!**

 **-CS**


	9. Chapter 7: Networking Part 3

**Volume 1**

 **Chapter 7**

 **Networking**

 **Part 3**

 _Beiji Xiong, as you probably already know, was the leader of the Axe Gang, or as they were known back then, the Xiong Triad. And while Junior may have become a bit of a slouch by the time of Yang Xiao Long's first visit to The Club, neither he, Da Hui, or Beiji were back then, when the Triad was at its' prime. Those three men were the main reason none of the other gangs felt confident enough to make a serious attempt to replace the Triad. Of course, what many of those stories will forget is that no self-respecting Aura trained individual is going to enter a fight against others like them without at least one more like them for back up, and even with Junior down and Da Hui out, Beiji still had two competent henchmen..._

* * *

"Oh _shit..._ "

While Beiji may have been large, intimidating, and possessing of more than enough strength and skill to back his reputation, he was, alone, more than manageable for the team currently assembled against him. Again, Lee would place his money on Cinder in a one on one fight (though he would admit that it might be a little to close for comfort), while Mercury and Emerald would probably be able to beat him if they worked together; they could possibly even do it without getting hurt themselves if Lee could effectively support them, preferably with an ambush. Lee himself, of course, while fundamentally sound at this point, still only had a little under half a year's experience in the art of combat, and thus would stand no chance in a protracted fight, except possibly as support for his teammates.

"I leave the premises for just a few hours to take care of some business, and _this_ is what I return to? Empty of patrons, my sons assaulted, and the place looking like a tornado hit because of a Geisha and her two brats?!"

Lee winced a bit at the barely relevant insult, as well as the sheer volume of his roar; combined with his size, he could really see why his family chose "Bear" for their surname. But like he'd said earlier, Beiji wouldn't be much of a problem at all on his own, especially enraged as he was. What _really_ had him worried were the two henchmen he'd brought with him.

The first, attired much like the two younger Xiongs, looked to be of similar height to Lee, Mercury, or Cinder, and wielded what appeared to be a rather wicked looking set of red claws on his wrists. Combined with his blue green eyes (as in, they seemed to be a single shade of a color in-between green and blue, unlike Cerulean's own partially green and partially blue eyes) and bowl-cut straight black hair, that would make him Markos Malachite. His partner, a few inches shorter and dressed in a female-cut version of the same outfit, didn't have any immediately apparent weapons, but that, combined with fact that she had entered with Beiji and Markos, most likely made her Mila Malachite, Markos' wife. Though he could not see them, Lee knew from the mission briefing that Mila's weapon of choice were her bladed white heels. Both were absolutely ferocious agility based fighters, and, when working with one of the Xiong's, quite excellent at keeping their targets locked down enough that the Xiong's massive strength could accurately be brought to bear; when combined with each other _and_ Beiji, they were the metaphorical rock to the hard place.

"Beiji. So nice of you to finally join us." Cinder's tone was pleasantly torrid, and, though he could not see it from his position, he was certain her expression would match, though with a subtle crinkle to her eyes to indicate she was amused by the whole situation. Combined with the blood that was by now dripping from her glass blades, Lee felt justified in thinking that the phrase femme fatale was perfectly represented by one Cinder Fall. "I was just having a rather pleasant discussion with your boys before one of them decided to become a little frisky. Perhaps you ought to teach Junior to respect a lady's personal space?"

Off in their corner, Lee could not help but mutter: "Burn!" Cinder's two male henchmen subtly exchanged a fist bump.

On the other hand, Beiji Xiong did _not_ seem to be amused by Cinder's technically correct statement, and his already enraged features seemed to flare even more aggressively.

"I'm going to make you pay for this, bitch!"

On the dance floor, Cinder's demeanor frosted over. "You'll _try_."

Up in the DJ's booth, a new vinyl was placed on the turn tables.

* * *

 **Cue OST: paste this into the Youtube search bar, then hit the first video:** **v=8Kp3F_V9w7Q**

* * *

A tense stand off occurred as each side stared the other down... And then, with a wordless yell, Beiji Xiong rushed the dance floor and Cinder, followed by both Malachites.

"Sky! Get the DJ, I'll help Queen!"

"On it!"

Without any further prompt needed, the duo sprang to accomplish their assigned tasks; Mercury, to the dance floor to provide his boss some much needed support, and Lee up the stairs again to deal with DJ Deadbe4, who was once again spraying bullets at Cinder, as well as Mercury once he joined the fracas. Not that Deadbe4's SMG alone was much of a threat, but combine that with the surrounding mooks taking pot shots in between Beiji and the Malachite's close ranged attacks and there was just simply way too much Dakka being brought to bear; thus, Lee needed to lessen that.

While Lee ran up the stairs, he made sure to keep one eye on the brawl happening below, and was glad that he did; as soon as he caught sight of the first mook choosing to aim at _him_ instead of Cinder or Mercury, bullet time kicked in once more. As he began to duck and weave past the first bullets, he idly wondered if he had just discovered his Semblance, seeing as this seemed just a little bit too calm to simply be an adrenaline rush taken up to eleven, and his eyes still moved at normal speed relative to his own perception... But, that was a question better answered when he didn't have bullets flying at him. Speaking of which, Deadbe4 probably realized he was coming now. If Deadbe4 was smart, he'd simply wait and spray him as he rushed through the door...

"Shtako..."

The way Lee saw it, he had two options. He could either rush through the door at full speed, and aim to take down Deadbe4 (who _had_ indeed stopped firing by that point) before he could squeeze off enough rounds to actually puncture Lee's aura... Or he could perform some risky acrobatics in order to leap through the front window, but to do that he would have to expose himself to the mooks firing at him from below. Or... Did he? Lee's eyes traveled down to his left hand gauntlet, and as an idea formed, Lee decided that no, he would not have to expose himself.

Stopping just below the landing before the booth, Lee slid to a halt up against the bullet proof glass balustrade. In a bid to identify just how many of the mooks were focused on him instead of Cinder and Mercury, he cast his gaze through the clear barrier. Being in hyper-slow-motion most certainly helped with this; in the time it took for the mooks to focus fire and start putting cracks in the glass, Lee's eyes had managed to sweep the area several times, coming up with a total of about a dozen and a half mooks spread across four groups, with the smallest containing three (not including those near them firing at Cinder and Mercury instead) while the largest had ten. That latter, Lee decided, would make the best target for what he had in mind, especially since they also happened to be the closest group.

 _'Dust, Aura, don't fail me now!'_

Holding his right hand in front of him, Lee focused, extending his Aura to where he knew a Water Dust crystal was woven into his glove. A quick probe was all he needed to ascertain that, yes, it was still there; that was the easy part. Thanks to a few months of training with Cinder, Lee could proficiently use all four basic types of raw Dust, so long as he was only focusing on a single source of it. Lee knew that, now that his aura had successfully made contact with the Dust, he could, using his Aura as a medium, form and propel basic bolts of an element, in this case Ice. He could, if he chose to, pop his upper body over the lip of the balustrade just long enough to aim and fire a literal spear of ice at one of the mooks, and at such a speed that they probably wouldn't be able to react in time to dodge it. It would have taken a little bit of concentration even just yesterday... But yesterday, Lee had yet to discover his Semblance. With everything occurring in hyper-slow-motion, but his Aura still capable of moving at the speed of his mind, it was child's play to maintain enough focus to manipulate the Dust. So with what once required all of his concentration, now relegated to being something he could do almost without thinking... How much more could he handle?

While still being sure to keep a figurative eye on where his Aura was drawing on the Water crystal, Lee next turned his focus towards the Fire crystal in his right glove, the same one he'd used to perform the Shoryuken on Da Hui earlier. A mental tendril was extended to the Fire crystal, while still holding on to the Water... And to Lee's immense relief, he managed to successfully link to it on the first try.

 _'Good, now I know I can do that. But can I combine them?'_

Normally, raw Dust is mixed in it's powdered form, in sterile laboratories, and most certainly without the use of Aura. It is, after all, a volatile substance, capable of being activated by something as innocuous as a sneeze. If one wanted to combine the properties of two types of Dust, the proper and safe way was to buy a crystal or vial of the two types of dust combined; it was generally accepted that attempting to use two separate crystals at once was too difficult for anyone who wasn't at the very least an expert, due to the concentration required for each as well as the intricate process of drawing on the crystal's power and then using your own Aura to shape it into the form you want. But most people weren't capable of seeing the world in what amounted to ultra-slow-motion; combined with his lessons from Cinder, herself a master of Dust usage, Lee was successfully able to control the separate actions in order to combine the Fire and Water and create Steam, rising steadily from his right hand.

 _'It's show time!'_

With a single fluid motion, Lee stood, used his left hand to guide the steam out of his upwards-facing right palm, drew his right back into a shot put or javelin throwing stance, then pushed his right hand forward, blasting a steady stream of steam all the way from his own position down to the dance floor, scalding several of the mooks closest to him. With a yell of exertion, Lee forced it to keep coming... And slowly pivoted, filling up the entire dance floor (and thus keeping the mooks from firing at Cinder and Mercury or else risk hitting Beiji and the Malachites) before turning his attention to the DJ's booth, which was subjected to the same treatment through the open front.

For the second time that night, the music was interrupted by a horrible noise, this time of electrical equipment being short-circuited due to the sudden permeation of hot water vapor.

"No, my vinyls!"

Lee felt bad for the guy, especially considering that he had been enjoying the track that was playing, but Deadbe4 _had_ been shooting at his boss. Lee's course had been clear... And he hadn't reached the goal quite yet. While the mooks and, more importantly, Deadbe4 were distracted by the steam, Lee charged the rest of the way up the steps, pausing only to force his way through the relatively weak door with a few well placed punches; on the final one, delivered with the assistance of a little bit of Air Dust, the door was launched straight across the booth, knocking a panicked Deadbe4 out cold before crashing into the opposite door.

"Well, that was anti climactic."

But, Lee really shouldn't have expected any better; just because Deadbe4 had a slightly different costume and a machine gun didn't make him any better than the rest of the mooks down below. He supposed that was for the best; with Deadbe4 quickly out of the way, that just meant he now had more time to start working on the rest of the fodder. Emboldened by his success, Lee decided he was going to make his presence felt on the battlefield below. A quick look out the booth's window, where, despite being obscured by the steam, he could see flashes from Cinder's and Mercury's fight against Beiji Xiong and the two Malachites, followed by a quick calculation, and Lee was ready. Backing up to the very rear of the booth (but not before taking a quick peak at the title of the album Deadbe4 had been playing), Lee gave himself a running start before vaulting up onto the edge of the window... And then leaping out over the action going on below.

While he was airborne, Lee began to draw on the Earth crystal in his left glove, as well as the Air... But then thought better of the latter. Despite having proven he could do it now, mixing those two would simply create a sandstorm... And while he himself was still wearing his Axe Gang shades, so was most of the Axe Gang, while Cinder, Mercury, and Emerald were not. Besides, he did _not_ want to deal with Cinder's wrath when it she realized just how much sand was in her hair... So as Lee approached the ground, he settled for using just Earth.

With a quick yell, Lee landed on a mook, pounding him into the ground. Rising from that, Lee's arms began to move, flinging bolts of Earth into a mook with every chop and extension until he was inside the circle with Cinder and Mercury. Lee's entrance brought a pause to the battle there. Or at least, it _would_ have if Cinder's gang were the type to play fair. And while in Lee's case, he might have been, he was also perfectly willing to fight just as dirty as the situation called for. And in this case, Lee decided that the situation dictated that anything goes.

While Beiji had paused, preparing to say something, a chain-scythe had appeared from behind him and his bodyguards, snaring a visibly exhausted Mila Malachite around both ankles before being yanked back, pulling her feet out from under her and causing her to smack her head against the dance floor. A stunned Markos managed to turn just in time to see Emerald, previously unnoticed, drive the blade of her second kusari-gun-ma under Mila's ribs and directly through her heart, before a loud bang and a jerk of the rapidly dying body announced that Emerald had shot her for good measure.

"Mila!" Now thoroughly enraged, Markos prepared to launch himself at Emerald... Only to be shoulder tackled in the small of his back by Lee, sending them both crashing to the ground, the former face first with the latter managing to scramble so he was straddling his back. Lee, glad to have rid Markos of any ability to use his agility, began to repeatedly slam his lead weighted, titanium plated fists into the back of Markos's head, one after another, aiming to diminish his Aura as soon as possible and deliver a knockout blow.

Beiji, in a desperate bid to save Markos, raised both of his hammers to sweep Lee off... But was forced to drop one when an exploding arrow detonated against his hand and missed with the other thanks to a shotgun shell to the forearm altering the trajectory.

On the ground, Lee didn't fail to miss the sharp crack of bone as Markos' skull finally gave way, leaving Lee's fists soaked in blood, bits of bone, and grey matter.

Beiji... did not take the sudden deaths of his henchmen well. Himself already moderately exhausted, the first flickers of fear began to appear in his eyes as he backed off, allowing Cinder and Co. to regroup before him. None of the surviving mooks were brave enough to join him.

"Beiji, Beiji, Beiji... Did I not tell you that you would only _try_ to make me pay for your son's own actions? I see stupidity must run in the family, because now, thanks to you, your two top henchmen are dead. Have you anything to say for yourself?"

Were the situation any less serious, Lee might have grinned at the condescending tone Cinder was using to address a man more than twice her size, and the fear he was clearly struggling to contain. But, despite the current lull, the fight was still on until the other side was either dead or incapacitated; Beiji Xiong did not seem to be the type to surrender.

"Mila... Markos... They had children, you monsters!"

Cinder couldn't have cared less. "At least one of them should have chosen a less dangerous career."

Beiji's visage began to be taken over by even more fear as the opposing quartet began to close in, weapons drawn; all he could do was shakily raise his own weapons before him.

"I am going to give you one chance, Beiji; you can either do as I say, and I will allow you and Junior to walk out of here alive, along with your surviving henchmen. Or you can hang on to your honor and refuse, and you will die horribly, along with anyone else who does not wish to surrender. Which will it be, Xiong?"

"You said me and Junior; what about Da Hui?"

Lee raised a brow, before turning his head ever so slightly to face his boss; that was actually a good question. When Lee and Merc had finished with him, he'd merely been unconscious...

"Dead before you even entered the building."

Apparently, Lee had one helluva right uppercut. Beiji managed to make that connection too, because his gaze, suddenly murderous, was now locked on Lee, who tensed himself for a fight. With Cinder, Emerald, and Mercury backing him, he was not worried about the possibility of losing... But he himself would be badly injured if he let his guard down even once. So Lee subtly began drawing on the last of his weapons' crystal types...

Just in time to slam an electrically charged palm into Beiji's sweat-drenched face.

To his left, Lee could hear Emerald's amused comment: "Oooh, wrong move."

"You should have taken the boss's offer." Lee... Did not like the thought of what he now had to do, thanks to Cinder's ultimatum, despite now having done so at least twice tonight. But he liked the thought of watching one of his comrades perform the deed against an already defeated opponent even less, so he stifled his revulsion and poured more aura into the attack, consuming both it and the Lightning crystals in his gloves at a faster rate in exchange for upping the voltage to a lethal dosage. It... was not pleasant to watch, especially not up close as he was, but after a solid minute of electrocution, the crystals were consumed, and Beiji Xiong was nothing more than a charred, twitching husk on the ground.

* * *

 _After that, none of the surviving Axe Gang gave us trouble; the mooks laid down their weapons and begged for their lives, while Junior, now the highest ranked member of the Gang, was forced to comply with Cinder's demands, which basically boiled down to free information gathering services in exchange for his life. He also was not allowed to disclose just who exactly had come in and wiped out most of the Axe Gang's upper echelon... But that was pretty much a given; the events of that day, despite not going quite how Cinder had planned, had installed a healthy amount of fear in Junior, who, even after watching the security footage, could not figure out how Mercury, Emerald, and myself had managed to infiltrate the club, or how we had managed to take him and his brother down so quickly. All in all, a successful mission. All that remained was to return to base, rendezvous with Neo, and go through a debrief..._

* * *

 **Oh. My. Gawd. I _wrote_ that and I can't believe that happened! I had planned on Lee killing at least Da Hui, but wow, I didn't expect for him to end up killing both Markos and Beiji as well. Not counting all the mooks Cinder and Mercury killed, that gives Lee the highest body count for that mission... Which will certainly be addressed next chapter.**

 **As always, honest reviews are appreciated, no matter how severe they might end up being; after all, criticism allows an author to identify what the readers don't want, giving us something to keep in mind when we're actually writing our stories.**

 **On a different, unrelated note, I've gotta say: Neon Katt and Flynt Coal are officially my favorite extra characters in the main show to date! Team FNKI! I can't even! XD**

 **-CS**

 **PS: I also just added a poll pertaining to the story to my profile. Please check it out and vote! I'll be leaving that open until the arc before Beacon :D**


	10. Chapter 8: Networking Part 4

**Volume 1**

 **Chapter 8**

 **Networking**

 **Part 4**

 _Death... Is not something I was personally experienced with at that point in time, not in the way the average inhabitant of Remnant is. Sure, I had lost the occasional pet, distant family member, or friend of a friend to this phenomenon while I was still a child... But in a world without Grimm, living in the country that is widely accepted as that world's most powerful with next to zero debate, and having been raised in a middle class family with no criminal records, death, at least as it pertains to humans, is rather easy to avoid, barring natural causes. So before that day, I had yet to see a human die in person... Let alone cause it myself. Well, that I could remember, any way; the first time, the one Cinder mentioned the day I met her, still eludes me. But that's not important right now. What is important is that, not only had I just witnessed a human's death for the first time... But I had also consciously and willingly caused it. One could argue that Da Hui and Markos were accidents, a result of miscalculating my own strength as well as the remaining strength of their Auras, and having been caught up in the heat of the moment, but Beiji had been premeditated, even if only for a moment. But... what else was I to do? I told Cinder when I first joined her outfit that I was averse to killing, and would prefer to avoid being put into the position as much as possible... But also that I would not hesitate should the situation require me to do so. And that night, in that place, it was most certainly required. But we've already went over why it was, so instead of me wasting our time repeating those events, let us move on to the aftermath._

 _I mentioned last time that, in the big picture, the main result of that mission was that Junior, now the sole, uncontested (by anyone significant, anyway) leader of the Axe Gang, would provide us with information, without charging us his normal fees for it. What I failed to mention was just why we did that. And before you raise that brow, no, we weren't simply being greedy. As you've probably already guessed, Cinder is not the forgiving type; not when it counts, anyway. She also isn't the type to make idle threats; Beiji learned this the hard way, costing him the lives of himself, his two bodyguards, and the elder of his two sons. You see, Cinder had purchased information from the Xiongs before, prior to my joining the crew, but what she hadn't counted on was anyone beginning to search for information on herself. Maybe it was Cinder's fault for not considering it, or perhaps it was Beiji's for not giving her a chance to counter-offer, but Beiji had told a certain person just enough to identify Cinder, known to the Xiongs only as the Red Queen, as the missing link behind a slew of seemingly unrelated incidents. Fortunately, Beiji hadn't told this person enough to actually identify Cinder as the Queen... For the mere act of revealing her existence to another unknown party, Cinder's wrath had been evoked._

 _But even when enraged, Cinder does not act solely out of anger; after I killed Beiji, Cinder interrogated Junior, inquiring into just who had been inquiring into her. But while that was going on, I had already left, needing to be alone with my thoughts. However, I hadn't counted on having company..._

* * *

 _'I can't believe I just did that...'_

 _That,_ of course, referring to his premeditated murder of Beiji Xiong.

"You know, it isn't murder when it's in self-defense."

Caught up as he was in shock, Lee hadn't noticed Emerald follow him out of the The Club and down the mostly empty street, apparently having been content to follow in silence for- Lee took a quick glance at his watch- ten minutes now. Of course, Lee had been fighting a battle with the urge to vomit for most of that (he'd lost that one a few minutes ago). In that time, they had managed to put a full block behind them. Lee sighed.

"Even if it was justifiable, it still counts as manslaughter, Em."

Emerald frowned as she drew level with him, placing an arm around his waist and resting her head against his side. To which Lee momentarily raised his brow... Before realizing that, by putting his own arm around her shoulders (which he promptly did), they would appear to be an average teenage couple walking home from a date at The Club. Nothing for him to read in to, and nothing for passers-by to perform a double take over.

"It _was_ justifiable, Lee. He did try to kill you first."

"Yeah, but I had plenty of time to stop electrocuting him. Instead, I upped the voltage." Lee sighed again. "Look, Em, I appreciate what you're trying to do, I really do, but it's not really me choosing to kill Beiji that's eating at me... That was my first time, you know."

"I think that's supposed to be my line." Emerald quipped, smirking up at a glaring Lee. "But, you're right. The first time is always the hardest..."

Something about the way Emerald's voice lowered when she said that, and the way her eyes suddenly averted... It didn't sit well with Lee.

"Was that your first time too? And don't you dare say what you're about to, I'm being serious here."

Now it was Emerald's turn to sigh, as the humorous approach was preemptively blocked off. "Excuse me for trying to cheer you up a little... But if you really must know, then no, it wasn't... That was actually only my second time seeing a stiff that close... And the first time I'd personally caused it."

Lee... Had trouble believing that one. Emerald may have only been 17 years old, but she had also been with Cinder for a year and a half by this point. Lee refused to believe that in all that time, this was only the first time she'd personally killed someone.

"Merc is usually the metal man."

"Oh. Well, you do like to traipse about like a monkey*."

Now it was Emerald's turn to glare, though the effect was largely mitigated by the fact that she hadn't removed her face from his chest in order to glare, and was lightly shivering. Not that he could blame her; the night had turned chilly once the last rays of sun light had disappeared from the horizon, and she was wearing only a small skirt and blouse, having changed out of her mook disguise before leaving the club. Lee would have offered her his jacket... But... Well, okay, he couldn't find any reason not to, especially since it wasn't even his own, so he forced himself to smile as he peeled the chilled girl off himself so he could doff the jacket.

"Hold your arms out."

And just like that, the glare died, to be replaced with a (reluctantly) grateful smile as Lee, ever the gentleman, helped her in to the jacket.

"Thanks."

"I could hardly allow a lady to freeze." Normally, Lee would have followed that up with some uncharitable comment, perhaps something along the lines of 'even if she barely counts,' but Emerald _had_ actually gone out of her way to be nice to him; Lee had no doubt that Cinder had ordered her to follow him to make sure he wasn't going to do anything too stupid, but that didn't mean she had to actually attempt to comfort him. So it'd be a bit of a dick move if he brought them right back to negging one another... Er, just insulting each other, that is, no sexual connotations implied. While he'd readily admit that Emerald was attractive, it wasn't as if he was trying to seduce her.

"Well, I'm still freezing, so come here."

Lee gulped as he was tugged once more into wrapping an arm around her shoulders, while Emerald all but cuddled into his side. Which was not helping his currently straying thoughts. _'Down boy...'_

"So, how did you handle witnessing your first homicide?" Needless to say, the sudden change of subject served to suppress his sudden bout of libido, while also returning to the original topic of conversation.

A wan smile made it's way to Emerald's face as she replied: "Much like you are, actually; shock, disbelief, and just a little bit of guilt were eating away at me. But again, like you, I also knew that it was necessary." She paused then, and Lee waited patiently; Emerald seemed to be debating how best to proceed. "It was Merc's dad."

That... Stopped Lee in his tracks. "I'm sorry," he began in a confused tone of voice. "Could you repeat that? I don't think I heard you correctly. It almost sounded like you said you killed Merc's dad."

Emerald, herself forced to an abrupt stop due to her current appendage to Lee, looked him in the eye with a deadpan expression. "Not quite." Then began to walk again, tugging Lee along by the waist.

Lee stumbled forward at the pulling, but soon righted himself as they began to move again. Still, he had questions.

"Seeing as Merc is your best friend, I'm going to assume that there's a story behind that."

"Well, you're not wrong." Lopsided grin met deadpan gaze.

.

..

...

"This is the part where you actually tell the story. Or at least the basic summary, if you don't want want to talk about it too much."

Emerald chuckled a little. "Sorry, couldn't resist the opportunity."

Lee growled. "Emerald..."

"Alright, alright! It wasn't long after I had joined up with Cinder, maybe... actually, it was probably about as long as it's been since you joined us. Maybe a little longer. But, anyway, she had heard about this assassin, and decided that he would be useful for a future mission. So after doing a little bit of digging, we find out his name: Marcus Black, and that he lives in the mountains with his son."

"Mercury."

"Right. So Cinder and I eventually journeyed out there to meet him... And imagine our surprise that when we come upon the boundaries of his property, we hear shouting coming from inside."

"So... he was abusive?"

"We can only assume; to this day, Mercury refuses to talk about what his life was like before we met him. All I know is that it quickly escalated to an actual fight, and ended with his house up in flames and his dad dead by the side of the road... Though he'd managed to do a number on Merc. I managed to hold it together long enough for Cinder to convince him to come with us... But I ended up losing my dinner about ten minutes after that."

A pause ensued, both in the walk and the conversation, as Lee took a moment to process that. And when he did, he couldn't really say he disagreed. "Yeah, I guess I did the same thing." Of course, that also brought on another realization: "Oh my god. _That's_ why he's so into you, isn't it?" (And, Lee thought with a quick extension of that thought, why Emerald herself was so devoted to Cinder.) Lee's voice, while remaining lowered, was incredulous; it was so simple, yet without knowing the story one would be hard pressed to see just why Mercury continued to pursue someone who just clearly was not interested... She was his Princess Charming, come to rescue him from his "tower!" Lee _almost_ felt like a twat for picking on him for it so much. Emphasis on _almost;_ Mercury actually _was_ a twat, so even though Lee considered him a friend, he would still continue to ridicule him for that.

Emerald let out an exasperated sigh. "Yes, and it's _annoying._ I mean, don't get me wrong, I _do_ love him, and I will murder you if you ever tell him I said that! But he's more like the annoying little brother I never had, y'know?"

"Yeah," Lee deadpanned, "I know what you mean." Three guesses who he was talking about, and the first two don't count. Except... Neo didn't really annoy him; not usually, and not in the way that Mercury tended to annoy Emerald. Lee would occasionally snap at his pint-sized partner over something inane (such as attempting to steal his ice cream _every_ time he tried to have some), and she would most certainly return the favor (such as when he would call her 'pint-sized' one too many times), but on the whole they really did get along much better than Mercury and Emerald did, who honestly could not have a single conversation without bickering about something. Maybe someday, he could see them having something m-

Lee forced himself to abandon that train of thought. 'Nope _nope nope nope nope. This is Neo I'm thinking about, not going there.'_

With a groan, Lee shook his head and refocused on Emerald, who... Was... Laughing at him.

"What?"

"You were thinking about Neo, weren't you?"

Shtako. Time to bull-shtak his way out of this one. "Well, I _did_ just mention her. It'd be a little strange if she didn't warrant at least a passing thought, dontcha think?"

"You _know_ what I'm talking about."

Lee realized that this wasn't going to be easy. Time for plan A: Deny everything! "I have no _clue_ what you're referring to."

"You're harboring romantic thoughts about her."

Plan B: Distract her with flattery! "While I already have such a fine specimen attached to my side? I think not!"

A quick jab to the gut from Emerald's free arm was his reward for that statement... As well as her somehow managing to press even closer into his side, bringing attention to her rather sizable (for her age) assets; a blush that was just barely perceptible beneath Emerald's dark skin. Lee found that... Somewhat surprising.

Emerald attempted to deadpan: "You flatter me." Keyword there, being _attempted._

Well, at least the plan was working. Time to turn up the charm! "It isn't flattery if it's true: you _are_ a beautiful woman Emerald. Why, just earlier this evening, I took notice of your lovely skin, and could not help but think that it has a lot in common with chocolate: both are smooth, creamy, and fit to eat!" Lee finished that statement with a wink... Then nearly lost his composure as Emerald's blush rose considerably, and she began to sputter on her words.

"Wh-what?! I-I-I... That's!.."

Lee lost it then, and began to cackle.

"Oh my god, your expression right now! Too perfect!"

Emerald... Looked about ready to die of embarrassment. "...Fuck you."

"You wish!" Lee quipped, which caused Emerald to attempt to storm away in a huff... But Lee stopped her by slightly tightening his grip on her shoulders, pulling her back into a genuine sideways hug.

"Sorry, sorry, I saw my opportunity and took it; never would have taken you to be the susceptible type. But, moving on, _thank you_ for that; I needed it."

"I'm _so_ glad my embarrassment amuses you..."

* * *

 _The rest of our walk was spent in companionable silence, once Emerald had calmed down from the sudden embarrassment. And the next day, after we'd sat through a debrief with Cinder, I realized that we were better friends than we had been before, having gone from being more-or-less acquaintances who just happened to share the same group of friends, to actual friends who could seriously confide in one another from time to time. Hehe; I guess one could say that made us murder buddies. Neo was still my best friend, Mercury my bro, and Cinder more-or-less my mentor... But Emerald and I had definitely improved our relationship. And it was that thought that distracted me from wallowing in angst over my actions... And, eventually, allowed me to get over it entirely; I could hardly allow Emerald, Mercury, or even Neo to potentially be injured just because I was squeamish about killing another person, right? I still didn't like it... But I could at least stomach it now, and that more than anything finally convinced Cinder that she was right to follow her gut when she decided to unlock my Aura, saving my life and recruiting me in one. I was both able and willing to kill now, at least as long as I thought it was necessary, and it was that frame of mind that fully integrated me into the paradigm of Cinder's crew; we were all killers after that._

* * *

* **For anyone who didn't get that reference (and couldn't find it since it isn't on TV Tropes), that was an Artemis Fowl reference. Basically, brawn partnered with brains.**

 **Well... I had originally planned for this chapter to be the actual debrief, with only a brief conversation with Emerald preceding, but, apparently, I can still write while I'm drunk; the back half of this scene was written over the course of three hours while I was under the influence, without a single spelling error, and only some minor edits once I was sober to make it flow better; Drunk!Me seems to know his stuff. Yet somehow I can't do the same when I start drunk texting my friends. Lol. Anyway, this closes the current arc. As for the next... I'm thinking about expanding the preface into an actual prologue, probably including the scene where Cinder finds Lee, ending with her unlocking his aura. But I'm not quite sure I want to slow the forward momentum I've been holding on to in order to go back to it... Oh well. I guess I'll see which ideas flow faster.**

 **On a** **different note... Holy shtako! We all knew that Cinder had something planned for the tournament, but damn, I did not expect Merc's semblance to be THAT. I kinda wish I had known before, actually, because the action in this arc could have gone quite a bit differently... But, oh well. Now I know. To be terrified! That is one helluva way to instill doubt in a person's allies! I'm already shivering just imagining all the ways he could combo with Emerald... *shudder*.**

 **Back to THIS version of the story: Poor Merc is miles below crush depth into the friend zone but has a little bit of a backstory now, courtesy of Emerald, who shows her caring side, and Neo seems to have some competition!**

 **Neo: ..?**

 **Lee: She says she has no idea what you're talking about. For that matter, I don't either?**

 **CS: I know for a fact that you d- wait a second. WHO SAID YOU COULD BREAK THE FOURTH WALL? GET BACK IN THERE!  
**

 **Lee: You did when you started writing this story, you piece of shtako! Or do all those first person beginning and ending sections not count!?**

 **CS: Why I oughta... Excuse me folks, I seem to be having some difficulties with my characters; hopefully, I'll be able to get them back in line in time for the next chapter. Until next time!**

 **Oh, I almost forgot! Current poll results for the mission roster for the Vytal Festival:**

 **Professor Fall + CMSN: 11**

 **CMSN (led by Cinder) + CMMN (pronounced Cinnamon, led by Caerulean): 4**

 **FLME (led by Cinder) + CRLN (led by Caerulean): 2**


	11. Dossier: 'Sky'

Excerpt from the files of Hei "Junior" Xiong, not long after the raid on his club

 **'Sky'**

 **"Surprise, motherf***er!"**

 **-'Sky', while ambushing Da Hui Xiong**

Alias: 'Sky' (this is most likely an alias, and his real name remains unknown)

 **Characteristics**

Race: Human

Weapons: War Mage Gauntlets. A pair of thick gloves, secured around the wrist via straps. The outer surfaces are covered in metal scales, allowing them to be both hard on impact and flexible enough to cover his entire hand. It is suspected that an interior layer is lined with Dust.

Gender: Male

Age: Currently unknown. Estimated to be between 16 and 20, based on voice samples.

 **Appearance**

Accessories: Wristwatch

Image: **A/N: I am still looking to commission a drawing and/or rendering of Lee. PM me if interested.**

Complexion: Light Brown

Height: 5'11" (1.8 meters)

Hair Color: Black

Eye Color: Blue/Green. Unclear which, as the subject was wearing red-tinted sunglasses the one time we've seen him so far.

 **Traits**

Handedness: Right

Semblance: Suspected to be something along the lines of high speed informational processing (but that still leaves the question of how he managed to infiltrate the premises, as careful review of security footage doesn't show him entering. However, recorded, intercepted radio traffic indicated he may have had help from a fifth person, referred to as 'Soft Serve'). Unclear, but suspected, based on security camera footage of his eyes glowing for brief instances both while fighting Da Hui Xiong and just before unleashing a cloud of steam. Which, coincidentally, made all security footage after that unreliable for identifying distinguishing features.

 **Professional Status**

Affiliation: The Red Queen's Faction

Occupations: Mercenary, Mage

Team Name: Unknown. Currently, referring to them as QSGMS (Queen's Gems)

Partners: 'Queen', 'Gem', 'Messenger', 'Soft Serve'

 **Personal Status**

Status: Active

* * *

 **Appearance**

'Sky' is an athletically built male with light brown skin and full, black hair styled into a faux-hawk. His eyes are either green or blue, and he seems to wear a custom wristwatch.

Thus far, we've only seen him wearing a stolen copy of our uniform: black suit, red tie and glasses. He did seem to have customized gloves, which are suspected to be made of a rather heavy metal alloy judging by the amount of damage merely striking Da Hui caused. They all seem to have Dust infused into them, as 'Sky' was seen to pull Steam and later Earth and then Lightning from them.

 **Abilities and Powers**

'Sky' seems to be a cross between a fighter and a mage, combining both martial arts and elemental dust-based attacks in his style. Seems to possess exceptional reflexes and aura reserves, though these might simply be average to above average and just boosted by his semblance; his glowing eyes while these traits are exhibited, visible even behind a pair of our sunglasses, seem to support this theory. Beyond this, not much else is known.

* * *

 **Background**

Little is known about 'Sky' at the moment, seeing as his real name is currently unknown. All we know for sure is that 'Sky' is undoubtedly an alias, and that he is a subordinate to 'The Queen.' All efforts to find out more about him will be made the moment we receive any additional information.


	12. Chapter 9: Escalation Part 1

**Volume 1, Chapter 9**

 **Escalation, Part 1**

 **M: +4 D: +23**

 **One week after the events of Networking.**

 **Morning**

"So... You and Emerald seem to be getting along better lately."

Lee didn't even look up from the carton of eggs he was inspecting, and kept both his expression and his tone of voice completely disinterested. "I suppose you could say that."

Next to him, Mercury did the same while checking the expiration date on a gallon of milk. "One might even say you two are getting pretty chummy."

Lee rolled his eyes before walking away, carton of eggs in hand. It didn't take a genius to figure out what was going on here, and considering this was Mercury talking about Emerald, even an idiot would have figured it out. Still, they were friends, so Lee would try not to be too much of a dick about this.

"Is there a point to this, Merc?"

Lee could not help but smirk to himself a little bit as behind him, he picked up just the faintest of grumbling: "Now you're even starting to sound like her..."

"I can still hear you."

"You were meant to. But back to Emerald; what's going on, Lee?"

A brief silence settled as the two moved down the grocery aisle, Lee deciding how best to handle this whilst Mercury patiently waited... Which in and of itself told Lee that he was very interested in the answer.

"Well, after the incident at The Club, we..." Lee paused, taking a moment to look around their surroundings: a semi-busy grocery store during the earlier hours of the morning. "We probably shouldn't talk about this here."

 _Here_ , in this instance, was the grocery store nearest their apartment. Both were casually dressed in Tee-shirts and sweat pants so as not to draw attention, but that would be a moot point if they did so anyway by discussing the events of last week out in the open. Merc took one look around, and promptly agreed, albeit with a suffering sigh.

"Sorry bro."

"It's fine... So long as you aren't just avoiding the question and hoping I'll forget."

"Pfft, I would _never!_ " A playful grin was tossed over Lee's shoulder at his companion... Who rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, of course you wouldn't..."

* * *

 _While my excuse was valid, I actually was stalling for time. After all, how do you tell one of your best friends that you're (not so) suddenly interested in the same girl he is, after several months of it being extremely obvious that said friend is absolutely obsessed with her? Of course, Mercury would never admit to it, which would make that conversation slightly easier from my end... But it was still going to be one that required a little bit of delicacy in its handling..._

* * *

"So. You and Emerald. Spill."

Lee and Merc were now walking down the street, laden with grocery bags, having completed their grocery shopping. Which meant Lee had run out of time to decide how he would handle this conversation... Fortunately, with subtle use of his semblance, he'd had far more than enough to come up with a plan of action.

"Well, as you know, Emerald and I weren't too close before last week."

"Uh huh."

"In fact, unless it involved pulling a prank on you, I don't think we'd ever hung out just the two of us, she and I."

"Right..."

"But apparently, all it took was hanging out once for us to realize we had some common ground."

"Lee, that's still a pretty big leap from just happening to have the same group of friends to walking through the front door arm in arm."

Lee shrugged. "It was cold out, and she was wearing a dress; my mother raised me to be a gentleman."

A quick glance sideways showed Lee that Merc was frowning, revealing that he didn't necessarily like that answer... But it was the truth. Lee may not remember his mother's name, and he knew that if she could somehow find out what he'd done at The Club last week, disappointed would be an understatement in describing her thoughts on the matter. He knew that his personality had already changed by coming to this new world, and becoming involved with this group... But he'd be damned if he abandoned the core of his personality, of how he was raised, and that included being a gentleman whenever possible. Which included sacrificing his own (stolen) warm jacket for the sake of allowing a lady to be warm.

"Fine, but that doesn't explain why you two were practically wrapped around each other."

"It was _really_ cold."

"You looked like you were enjoying it."

"Of course I was! Emerald may be pretty athletic but she still manages to be surprisingly cuddly. Plus: boobs! I'd be kind of worried if a guy _didn't_ enjoy being cuddled by a girl with a rack that pronounced."

Lee's smirk threatened to split his face as another peek sideways showed Mercury's composure slipping; he was quickly descending from feigned indifference to annoyance.

"I guess I can't argue with that."

"Well, you could, but you'd have to be either a lolicon or gay... I won't judge you for the former, so long as you don't start bringing home girls who still need an adult present for anything, but if it's the latter, I'd like take this chance to inform you up front that I do _not_ swing that way."

 _That_ got Merc to sputter indignantly. "Why on Remnant would I-"

Lee, grinning openly now, could not help but rib his companion some more as they approached their apartment block.

"Of course, in the event you _have_ been harboring a man crush on me, I'd have to compliment you on your good taste before letting you down easy; I am a pretty good catch after all. Smart, handsome, talented with his Aura..."

"Dammit, Lee, **_I'm not_** _**gay!**_ "

Silence descended upon the scene as everybody nearby stared at the source of the loud shout... Who distributed dirty looks all around before following his laughing team mate into the building.

"Dude, you are _too_ chupping easy sometimes, you know that?"

"Screw you..."

"You wish!" Lee quipped, before dodging a lazy crescent kick. "Sheesh, lighten up Merc; _Emerald_ didn't even react violently when I used that line."

Well, Lee would never deny that he was willing to fight dirty. He knew that the whole point of Mercury's interrogation was to elicit a confession that Lee was romantically interested in Emerald... Which he would never admit to. He would, however admit that she was sexier than any girl her age had a right to be... But, just as with Neo, Emerald's age was the problem. Remnant's age of consent might only be 16 (14, in Vacuo), due to both the planet's low human/Faunas population as well as the ever-present threat of the Grimm, but Lee was from a society where the age of consent was 18 (17, in situations where one party is less than a year or two older), and while he may have become a mercenary over the last 5 months, and thus willing to break the law, the thought of engaging in intercourse with a minor, at least by his standards, was still absolutely squicktastic. Even if said minor was only barely a minor, and more attractive than literally _every_ full-grown woman he'd ever met back on Earth.

"Oh for fuck's sake, Lee, just tell me whether or not you're interested in her like that!"

And at that point, Lee was fed up with the interrogation, and finally snapped. Shifting his groceries into one hand so that he could grab Mercury by the front of the shirt, Lee lowered his voice as he pressed his back into the wall. "Merc, I'm only gonna say this once, and afterwards I'll pretend I didn't, so I suggest you listen: Emerald is a beautiful young woman, and perceptive to boot; she was able to see that what went down with the Xiongs was bothering me, and decided to play counselor; to my surprise, she actually succeeded. Were she a little older, I would most certainly be considering her romantically. But, alas, I'm actually twenty-two years old, despite my youthful good looks, and she's only seventeen. Seeing as the age of consent where I come from is seventeen, and even that really only applies in certain situations, the thought of actually having an active sexual relationship with her before she's 18 is positively squicky to me, even if it's technically legal here. Despite the fact that we already operate on the wrong side of the law, there are some standards that I refuse to break, and that is one of them. So you've got the better part of a year before you even really have to worry about me; I suggest you use that time productively."

Having said what he needed to say, Lee released Mercury, before storming away down the hallway, leaving Merc to attempt to digest the sudden turn things had taken.

* * *

 _The conversation sort of just died at that point, probably because I'd finally opted for the blunt approach rather than the delicate, leaving Mercury with nothing he could say without admitting I was right. But man, anybody who has ever met Mercury even once would agree that his attitude combined with his voice would make you want to knock his lights out. Because we were friends, I never did; instead, I just refused to sugar coat anything for him. Including my thoughts on how he went about showing his feelings towards Emerald... I suppose one could say that made me insensitive, but he literally asked for it that time. But, I've got to give Merc credit where credit is due, he certainly tried to get back at me..._

* * *

 **A couple of hours later**

"What?! There's no way it's leg day again already!"

Cinder and Co. were all seated around the breakfast table, downing their various pre-workout meals at a reasonable pace until Lee was informed by a rather smug Mercury that today's workout was going to be focused on the training of his legs: Leg Day. A desperate Lee turned to face Neo and then Emerald, who were both seated on one side, but the shorter of those two just giggled at him while the darker smiled apologetically.

"Sorry Lee, but he's right; we took Saturday off for the mission, then Sunday to recover, while Monday was cardio, Tuesday upper body and core strength, and yesterday was skill training. Which, as much as I hate to agree with Merc, makes him right."

Lee groaned in despair, allowing his face to become acquainted with the table as he slumped.

"Now now, Caerulean, you know we must not allow distaste for the effort required prevent us from maintaining peak physical condition; after all, are not the results worth it? It would be a _travesty_ to deprive Mercury of his eye candy."

The table _immediately_ erupted into chaos as three of its other occupants burst out into laughter (and in Neo's case, it was a genuine, vocalized belly laugh!), and the fifth groaned in humiliation before planting his face into the table. Cinder was not usually one for cracking jokes, but when she did, they most certainly tended to be both well timed, and flawlessly delivered.

 _ **Thunk. Thunk. Thunk.**_

"Whyyyyyyy..."

 _ **Thunk. Thunk.**_

Lee, thoroughly revitalized, followed up on the opening Cinder had just created: "You're right, Cinder. It would be the utmost _shame_ if I deprived the world of these!" And as Lee finished, he lifted his arms, left mostly uncovered by his shirt, and proceeded to flex, the action in and of itself causing a variety of reactions:

Emerald, true to form, rolled her eyes... But she did so with an amused smile, and just the barest hint of a flush.

Neo, _also_ remaining true to form, leaned back in her chair, arching her back so that her chest, covered in a tank-top, was pushed forward, with a coquettish expression adorning her features. Lee responded with a wink and a pec flex, clearly emphasized under his rather form-fitting shirt, and finally got Neo to blush... Before a moment later it was no longer visible. Lee allowed her to keep up the illusion, and looked to Cinder before it could shatter.

Cinder, in keeping with her good mood, was chuckling softly. And as for Mercury?

 _ **Thunk. Thunk. Thunk.**_

Yeah, that was about the appropriate reaction to getting roasted so thoroughly. Lee grinned, before turning to face Cinder again.

"Should we stop him? He might give himself brain damage."

Across from Cinder, Emerald chimed in. "Please, that would require him to actually _have_ a brain in the first place. He's more likely to break the table than that hard skull of his."

"All the same," Cinder cut in before a suddenly murderous Mercury, suddenly galvanized by the insult, could retort, "It would be a travesty if Mercury had to buy a new table because he could not handle a joke at his expense. Do lighten up, Mercury, you know we still love you."

" _Thank you,_ Cinder!"

"Even if you are a homosexual."

 **"Arrrgh!"**

.

..

...

 ** _Thunk._**

* * *

 _That morning, I most definitely held the upper hand in the rivalry that had suddenly developed between us; hard not to when you're being humiliated in front of your friends and colleagues, and even your boss is joining in on the fun. Which... Was unusual, but I wasn't going to question it just then; whatever the reason was, Cinder would either tell us when she decided we needed to know. In the meantime, all that mattered was that she was in a good mood, and a happy Cinder equated to a relatively easygoing Cinder. And an easygoing Cinder would not pass up the opportunity to watch two of her subordinates engage in a harmless little rivalry, which I was currently winning. But, the day was still young, and our trip to the gym would provide the perfect opportunity for Mercury to attempt to turn the tables..._

* * *

 **Poor Merc! Even Cinder couldn't pass up the opportunity to roast him! XD At the moment, this arc is largely being planned as a quote-unquote "filler" episode, solely for character relationships (obviously starting with Lee and Mercury) to be developed while I decide which major plot point should logically come next: at the moment, I'm thinking Summer Rose, but I may decide to go with Roman. I guess we'll see.**

 **Also, since I forgot to mention it last chapter: anybody else think the whole Tale of the Four Seasons thing in the last episode was a little far fetched, even for Remnant? I mean, I understand that Cinder has got to have some sort of OPness in order to compensate for the fact that she pretty much only has herself, Merc, and Emerald firmly in her camp compared to pretty much every Hunter and Huntress on Remnant, but seriously? Four women who have magic powers? Sounds like some serious Avatar-esque crap, in a world where super powers are already cheap. Bleh... But I digress. The point of this rant was to add that, while I'm personally not a fan of that particular plot line, I'll still use it here as well, which means Cinder assaulting Amber at some point. Probably not until it's close to time to go to Beacon though.**


	13. Chapter 10: Escalation Part 2

**Volume 1, Chapter 10**

 **Escalation, Part 2**

 _Leg day: with the exception of Mercury Black, and possibly Melanie Malachite, I can't think of a single person I know who would both willingly and happily subject themselves to such torture. Especially not with Mercury Black as your trainer... And most certainly not with a Mercury Black who is out to make you suffer. Such was my situation... And I have to admit, I absolutely brought it on myself; while I hadn't quite intended it as such, I may as well have thrown down the gauntlet when I ended our conversation about Emerald without denying any sort of attraction towards her. Combined with the newly found interest the two of us seemed to be taking in each other, and it was easy to see that Mercury very rightly felt that his chances were being threatened. So, in the face of that, what better way to humiliate the competition by bringing him past the brink of exhaustion, all while performing the same routine and making it seem easy. Mercury was practically strutting at the end of the day, while I could barely walk (with only my Aura preventing me from resorting to crawling); I hated to admit it, but Mercury had won round two. Round three, however, would have to wait, because that night, Cinder got around to letting us know just why she was in such a good mood that morning..._

* * *

 **That Evening**

"We're going outside the kingdom?" Three separate voices asked, all in various tones of confusion and concern. There was a Grimm reason, with two 'm's and a capital 'G', why only Hunters tended to leave the safety of the Kingdoms in small groups; even the military would send at least a full company on any mission outside the walls of the four main cities. And while Cinder herself was just as skilled as any Huntress, if not more so, the rest of them were probably only about as good as the average 2nd year trainee at one of the combat academies; Lee himself was likely only as good as a second year student at Signal, and that only because he'd spent just about every waking moment since arriving on Remnant either studying or training, with Cinder overseeing. Which meant that he'd yet to even see a Grimm in person... And yet, Cinder wanted him to come along with them into Grimm infested territory. Lee slumped into his seat on the couch.

"I'm sorry, Cinder, but are you sure we're up to the task? It's barely been five months since I started training; I'm pretty sure that I'd either just get myself killed or end up slowing you guys down looking after me."

Lee was rewarded for his pessimism with a hard knock to the head, delivered by his silent partner. His hands instantly shot up to cradle the afflicted area, while his deadliest glare was leveled at the diminutive young woman seated next to him.

"Ow! The hell was that for?!"

Neo was glaring right back... Though, Lee could see just the barest hint of a smirk coming through. Amused by his reaction to the physical abuse, no doubt. But if he was expecting a vocalized... ( _Telepathized?)_ answer from her, he would be disappointed, as it would be Cinder, seated across from them in an armchair, who would give him an answer.

"You may be inexperienced, Caerulean, but you are far from unskilled. In not quite five months, you have come from having just the faintest idea of how to fight to being able to defeat a larger opponent with at least a decade's worth of combat experience over you as well as an advantage in range and strength. You are also well on your way to becoming one of the best elemental dust mages Remnant has ever seen... Which is not a praise I deliver lightly, considering that I would say the same about myself. You are also easily skilled enough to compete with a third or fourth year student of one of the secondary combat schools, which is about when the average Hunter trainee will go on their first Grimm hunt, albeit in a controlled and supervised environment. But while the environment outside of Vale's walls will hardly be controlled, you will still have Neopolitan, Mercury, and Emerald, who are all comparable to the average higher combat academy student, as well as myself. You will be just fine, so long as you keep your wits about you."

"If you say so, Cinder..." While Lee couldn't help but feel most of that praise was only possible for Cinder to give because she had trained him herself (mostly), he nevertheless felt somewhat better about the entire situation. At the very least, he was reassured enough that he would agree to go along on this mission. Speaking of which... "But what are we going to be doing? I can't imagine that there's much out there, besides Grimm, Grimm, and even more Grimm."

All four of her subordinates turned curious gazes towards her, intent upon learning just what this mission would entail. Something about it had put Cinder in a good mood, and they would all (except for, perhaps, Mercury) readily admit that they had been dying to know. Knowing Cinder, that most likely meant it was going to advance her goals somehow...

"I take it you are all aware by now that we were betrayed by the Xiongs?"

A round of affirmative nods, as, _yes_ , they _did_ all happen to be aware of that fact. Hard not to be after the events of last week, during which Lee had killed two of them.

"You are also aware that Junior, in an effort to get back on our good side, has been looking into just who his father betrayed us to?"

Fortunately for Lee, his mind was quick enough in connecting the dots to prevent him from exhibiting FNG syndrome, namely by asking the obvious, albeit very stupid question:

"He finally found out?"

Emerald was quick to swat the back of Mercury's head, much to the amusement of Lee and Neo. "Of course he did, idiot; why else would Cinder bring it up?"

Lee, as had presumably Emerald and Neo, had thought far enough ahead to reach the next conclusion. "Whoever Beiji sold us out to, I'm going to guess that Junior went one better and discovered something other than just their name."

"Correct, Caerulean; while Junior already knew who our mystery agent is, that in and of itself was not enough for us to act. While I am confident that we could deal with this agent if need be, he is rarely seen outside of Signal Academy or the company of Headmaster Ozpin of Beacon, meaning that we would have to put ourselves on the metaphorical radar in order to do so, and that would not bode well at this point. No, what Junior was looking into was his connections. The man's sister has been missing for the last decade, but both of his other former team mates are alive, and have two children of their own."

Lee, normally content to let Cinder finish speaking before interrupting, could not suppress an indignant outburst: "Cinder, I am _not_ going to kill a pair of kids!"

Cinder herself seemed surprised that Lee had drawn that conclusion. "Of course not, even I have morals; we're going after one of their parents."

"That's even worse!"

Cinder frowned disapprovingly at Lee, before beginning to lecture him. "That would be, if not for who their parents are. Both are still active Hunters, and either one would pose a credible threat to our goals if and when this agent informs them of our existence. I know you have not been in this world for long, Caerulean, but surely even you have heard of Summer Rose and Taiyang Xiao Long."

Lee had. They, along with their teammate from their school days, Qrow Branwen (whom, Lee had now realized, must be this mysterious informant at the center of the conversation), were easily Vale's most famous Hunters at the moment. Despite the fact that all three were by now approaching their middle ages and teaching at Signal Academy on Patch, they still periodically went on high profile missions around the kingdom, conquering both the Grimm and the hearts of the common people wherever they went. Oddly enough, Summer and Taiyang were almost never seen together off of Patch... But, now that Lee knew they had children, it made sense; it would be irresponsible for both parents to take missions at the same time, leaving the two young children alone. Which meant that if they could find out when and where one of them was going to be on one such mission, and then kill them... Lee's conscience positively rankled at this train of thought, but... strip away any sense of morality and it was both a plausible and logical course of action to take. By putting one of them out of action so decisively, the other parent, and, more importantly, Qrow, would be driven into a period of mourning, which would serve to distract him from their trail long enough for it to go cold by the time he was ready to pick it up again. Additionally, in the event Qrow did manage to reacquire their trail, it would keep the surviving parent from joining any mission to track them down... At least until their two children were old enough to be left unattended. At which point said parent, as well as the children if they chose to become Hunters, would likely be first in line to come after them.

"I... Can see how that makes sense. But, rather than kill one of them, why not just deliver a career ending injury? If one of them was suitably disfigured, but still alive, the other wouldn't be able to leave their side for pretty much the rest of their lives, keeping both of them off our case indefinitely. That would still leave Qrow, but it'd buy us enough time for the trail to go cold, while also sending a message loud and clear... If we decided to let him know it was us."

Lee repressed a shudder of self-hatred; as much as it made sense, he was still very morally opposed to going after someone who wasn't directly opposed to himself or his comrades. As far as he was concerned, Qrow had made himself fair game by this point, but Summer and Taiyang remained relatively innocent in all of this...

"A very well thought out idea, Caerulean, but leaving our target alive to relay our identities would cancel out the very premise of this strategy; Qrow can not be allowed to discover just who we are, or what we are up to."

"And he won't, as long as we're smart about it! Strike quickly while the target is isolated, and make certain we don't wear our usual outfits; standardized attire, preferably resembling a known band of mercenaries or outlaws, and make sure that any uniquely distinguishing features, such as our eyes, and in Merc's, Neo's, and Emerald's cases, their hair, are covered up. If all Taiyang or Summer sees is a band of nondescript mercenaries, that's all they'll be able to report."

If he hadn't already voided what little had been in his stomach after their group workout session, it would be fighting to come up right now as he actually advocated a plan that involved the maiming of an innocent. As it was, his eyes were clenched shut as he was wracked with a deep emotional pain. But, considering that the alternative was literally murder (as opposed to his three cases of manslaughter at The Club)... Well, in this case, Lee decided that it was the lesser of two evils... Then again, wouldn't it be kinder to just outright kill the person, rather than leave them to linger as a broken shell of what they once were?

Lee didn't have an answer to that, nor was he about to ask for one; Cinder had made it abundantly clear that she was going through with this, morality be damned. So the best he could do at this point would be to do what he thought was right... Or, in this case, the least wrong... Which meant at least giving their target a chance to live a semi-ordinary life after Cinder was done with them...

For the first time since waking up on Remnant, Lee decided that he needed a stiff drink. Too bad he still had to sit through the rest of this impromptu briefing/planning session.

"You know," Mercury cut in before Lee and Cinder could continue their little argument, "I've been meaning to ask you about this, but it just hasn't seem to come up until now. Lee, did you know that your eyes are glowing?"

"Huh?" It took a moment for Lee to process the non sequitur, and make the switch from his previous rather morbid train of thought. "Haven't they always been like this? The day I woke up, Emerald said they were almost glowing."

"Yeah," Emerald replied, " _Almost._ This time they actually _were_ until Merc said something."

"Maybe it's just a trick of the light? I mean they do seem to naturally be rather bright like Cinder's."

"Perhaps," Cinder hedged, "But mine do not actually emit light. Yours have been on occasion for the last week."

"Wut."

A gentle nudge to the side caused him to look over to his partner, who was looking up at him with an amused gaze. _"They were like that at the club last week too, when I teleported in with that mook you cold clocked. Is there something you're not telling us?"_

Lee stared back at her uncomprehendingly as he went over the memory. Nothing had felt out of the ordinary, other than the fact that time had seemed to slow down the instant she popped in. And it had stayed slow, too, up until the mook had dropped unconscious. Perfectly normal for an adrenaline rush... Except that his eyes had moved at normal speed. The phenomenon had repeated itself several times that night, and Lee had been able to consciously replicate it since, which really only left one logical conclusion.

"Ohhhhhh!" Lee smiled as the connection was made. "I guess that must be a side effect of my semblance. I sort of stumbled upon it during the mission last week... Shtako, did I really never mention it?"

Emerald decided to answer for them all. "No, you didn't. We all sort of assumed you just turned out to be the type to get extreme results when put under extreme pressure."

Or, as Lee translated that, they thought he'd just suddenly decided to GiT GuD. Which... Wasn't entirely wrong, except in this case, GiT GuD had been more of a side effect than the objective. Needless to say, he couldn't help but chuckle a little bit. "Well, you're not wrong. That stunt with the steam? I was able to pull that off because I was experiencing time at a slower rate... Or, rather, I was thinking so fast that time seemed to be moving slower. And since infusing Dust into Aura and then using it offensively is largely a thought based process, I was able to use that speed to fine tune the process to make it more efficient. And, come to think of it, I suppose that means I also have Faunas-like reflexes while I'm actually using it, since I have more 'time' to process external stimuli before reacting..."

Lee couldn't help an ironic smile as he watched Emerald's jaw drop... And he could _feel_ the way Neo was staring at him like he was the coolest thing on the planet at the moment. "C'mon, it's not as if it actually makes me any faster. Quit looking at me like that, your semblances are still cooler than mine."

"Yours is still over powered!"

"Says the girl who can _manipulate minds!_ Jedi mind tricks for days!"

"Yeah, but... Okay, I'll give you that one. Also... What the hell is a Jed Eye?"

"It's from a movie series where I come from. Without going too much into detail, they basically run around with laser swords in an era where most people fight with laser guns, and can do things like shoot lightning, lift (small) space ships, and to an extent control other people's minds."

"Oh... I see."

Lee, of course, was too much of a gentleman to stick his tongue out at her... He totally didn't do that...

"Well," Mercury interjected as he sprang to his feet, causing Lee to gape at him incredulously, "As entertaining as this has been, I'm gonna catch me some shuteye."

"How are your legs not just tubes of pudding after today?!"

With a grin, Mercury just rolled up one of his pant legs... Promptly causing Lee to smack a palm into his own forehead. "I'm an idiot..."

Mercury had bionic legs. Which meant that while Lee had been pushing himself just to keep up in their workout, Merc had literally not even felt most of it, and had probably been resisting the urge to laugh at him the whole time. And what made it worse was that Lee had known him for five months now and never managed to figure that out... And they even shared a bedroom for Dust's sake!

That stiff drink was sounding better by the moment.

"Well played, Merc. Well played..."

* * *

 _Yeah... it took me nearly five months to finally realize just how much of an idiot I had become; between **not** noticing that Mercury has bionic legs, and somehow not expecting Cinder to target innocents in her machinations, it was pretty bad. Yet, despite it all, what choice did I have but to stick things out? Sure, I could have tried to leave, if the thought had occurred to me, but A: I was culpable in at least four cases of manslaughter by that point, of which one very well could be considered murder, and two of the others along with that one would have Junior Xiong looking to off me if ever learned that I had split from Cinder's group; and B: while I wasn't quite certain if Emerald or Neo would go along with it, I was **damn** sure that trying to run away from all of this now would put me at the top of Cinder's own hit list, me being her apprentice notwithstanding. And I held no illusions that I'd survive a serious fight against her. So like it or not, I was stuck... But at least the company was good when we weren't busy being miserable excuses for human beings, and it would be a couple of weeks before we set out on this newest mission..._

* * *

 **So... Was not expecting Merc to have bionic legs, but oh goodness that made the whole leg day joke work so much better! xD Also, I hadn't really noticed it back in volume 1, but Cinder looks quite like Ada Wong with the short hair, yeah? ^_^ But, on a more serious note, now that we actually KNOW a little bit about Emerald and Mercury's backstories (beyond Merc's implication earlier in the season that his dad was an alcoholic), I'll be going back to edit certain details in previous chapters in order to fit what we've just learned. Shouldn't take too long, as the only scene that will majorly change should be Lee and Emerald talking about Merc's family in Networking, Part 4.**

 **Update: Details in previous chapters have been rewritten to account for The Beginning of The End. Nothing too important changed, just a few details here and there that make the story compliant with canon so far. No need to really go back and reread if you read the old versions, just know the only thing major that changed was Lee's and Emerald's conversation back in Networking, Part 4, to make Mila Malachite her first kill, and to correct Merc's back story to what was shown in Beginning of the End. I've also shortened the amount of time pre-RWBY this is (3 years), as 5 years is too long for how old they all appeared to be in that episode. Until canon or Word of God says otherwise, I'm going to assume Emerald was approaching 16, Merc was a little older than that, and Cinder was in her early-mid twenties. Putting them at 17, 17, and 25ish now.**

 **Also, I added a new choice to the poll. Current poll standings:**

 **Professor Fall + CMSN: 19**

 **FLME + CMMN: 9**

 **FLME + CRLN: 4**

 **Divide and Conquer (New Option): 0**

 **I see people seem to like the idea of Professor Fall ^_^**


	14. Chapter 11: Escalation Part 3

**Volume 1, Chapter 11**

 **Escalation Part 3**

* * *

 **M: +5 D: +6**

 **(14 days later)**

 **Afternoon**

"All call-signs, this is Sky: I have possible eyes on the target. Moving in to confirm."

 _"Acknowledged, Sky. Keep us posted."_

"Copy that, Queen. Sky out."

Lee clicked the button to the microphone under his shirt, cutting the transmission, before letting out a soft sigh; he and Neo were once again seated on the patio of a small cafe, this time in a village about a day's drive (or a few hour's flight) out from Vale, near one of the CCT support towers. This allowed the military to station a small garrison here in order to protect both the town and the tower... But the fact that it was so near yet so far away from Vale meant that not many Hunters chose to settle down here, hence why their target had come in to town; the local garrison had several large dens of Beowulves nearby, enough that they couldn't possibly take them on without taking more casualties than the town's defense could sustain. So they had put out the call for a team of Hunters to deal with the issue, to which Summer Rose and two other, relatively unknown Hunters had responded to. That last fact learned just now, as he spotted her signature white cloak traveling in a group with them down the town's main street.

"You ready, Neo?"

Across from him, Neo shot him an amused look, with both eyebrows raised and the corners of her lips pulled just a little bit upwards. She didn't 'say' anything, but in this instance, she didn't exactly need to; her expression clearly said 'are you seriously asking me that?'

"I'll take that as a yes, then. After you, my dear."

 _"If you insist..."_

Of course, Neo's amused tone completely cancelled out the put-upon expression she had donned. And Lee felt comfortable in saying that he knew her well enough to know that she was actually excited for what was about to come... Chiefly, a chance to act like the hyperactive, adorable little girl she _appeared_ to be. Neo's current outfit consisted of a blue tank-top with the X-Ray and Vav logo, and green short shorts. Combine that with her hair, currently pulled into pigtails and dyed so that _both_ sides were brown, her wide, innocent eyes, and her diminutive stature, and it became rather easy to believe that she was about 13 or 14 years old, at best. Lee himself was wearing a pink shirt, this one with 'Donut' stenciled in white across the chest (and oh did he find himself the butt of many a joke a la Mercury), and a pair of brown pants, making himself seem like just another casual teenager. And both were wearing contacts in the same shade of blue. Perfect, for the ploy they were about to deploy.

After their little by-play, Lee turned his gaze back towards Summer, who was now drawing level with them on the opposite side of the street, and forced his eyes to bulge as if in surprise. Neo, playing along, adopted a curious expression before following his gaze... And proceeded to bounce up and down in her seat with barely repressed excitement. With a happily excited grin, she turned back towards Lee and placed her palms together beneath her chin, making a pleading expression.

"You... Want to go say hi?"

Frantic bobbing of the head yes.

"Well... Okay. Go ahead, I'll catch up after I pay for our drinks."

Neo promptly proceeded to squee... Directly into his mind, before taking off at high speed down the road.

"Unnnnnh..." Lee kneaded his temples with his knuckles as he stood up, hoping to alleviate the slight headache he now had while he headed to the cashier to pay their bill.

"She certainly seems like a handful, that one. Ye alright, there, laddie?"

Lee flashed the woman with the Celtic accent the most charming smile he could manage. "She may be a tad excitable, but I can never seem to stay annoyed at her for too long. Could _you_ seriously resist something that adorable?"

The lady behind the register chuckled. "I've two wee ones of my own, ye know, and I cannae help but smile at their antics most of the time. Speaking of which, ye'd better be off laddie, before ye lose track of 'er!"

"Oh crap! Thanks lady!"

And with a genuine panic, Lee shot out of the cafe at top speed, not wanting to lose sight of his 'cousin.' If he seriously lost her, and she had to resort to actually speaking in order for him to find her, he would _never '_ hear' the end of it. Especially considering she was already planning her revenge for dubbing her Soft Serve over the radios... Fortunately, he managed to _just_ catch Summer's group, now one half-pint larger, heading in to the local inn. Lee double-timed it over there.

.

..

...

"Sooooooo. I'm guessing that you don't speak much."

A quick shake of the head no.

"Neo!"

Half a year ago, Lee would have been panting for breath after even that short run. But half a year ago, Lee had been just another average guy, made lazy by technology and the lack of time to do much else outside of work. But now he was the very picture of fitness, managing to make the trip far quicker and with much more energy left over. More than enough to let out an annoyed shout towards his partner that he didn't even have to feign, seeing as his brain still hurt a little from her earlier mental squee. But he quickly shifted his expression to include relief as he marched over, wanting to convey to all watching that he was simply concerned for her.

"I'm so sorry, Ma'am, I hope my cousin hasn't been causing you too much trou-" Lee froze when he finally saw her face, feigning shock. "-ble? Oh my gosh, you're Summer Rose."

Summer, for her part, seemed a little taken aback, but quickly recovered into a friendly expression, letting loose a chuckle at the situation.

"Yup, that's me! But please, only my students call me Ma'am, and even then only because I have to let them call me _something_ other than my name. But I still don't like it, 'cuz it make me feel old. Either 'Rose' or 'Summer' will do just fine." If Lee hadn't known better, he'd have pegged her as being no older than Cinder based on her appearance and the sheer peppiness she exuded; mid to late twenties at the latest. Hard to believe she was actually in her mid thirties. "Which means you've got me at a bit of a disadvantage, Mr..."

"Sky. Caerulean Sky, Ma- Er, Ms. Rose. But I prefer to go by Lee."

"Lee it is, then. To answer your... question? Nah, your cousin wasn't bothering me at all! In fact..." Here, Summer's expression morphed into a mischievous grin, as she leaned forward to whisper: "Between you and me, she actually sort of made my day. She's been a refreshing change from dealing with Mr. Stoic and Ice Queen over there."

"Hmmph." "Hey!"

"Oh, shush, you _know_ you can't deny that one, Winter."

Lee blinked a little bit in surprise at the sudden proximity, but soon found himself smiling as he took it in stride; he could see why the common people liked her so much, if this right here was a common occurrence when she traveled. Not to mention, he could relate to that last statement almost perfectly, when applied to Mercury and Emerald; sometimes, Neo's unique brand of mute peppiness was the perfect remedy to the migraines some of Mercury's and Emerald's antics could induce... But of course, the opposite ran equally true.

"I know _exactly_ what you mean, Ms. Rose. But don't let her innocent appearance fool you; she is _very_ much an accomplished mischief-maker."

Stood beside him, Neo pouted at the comment. _"I'm so going to get you back for this."_

Neither of them noticed Summer's other companion, a large man carrying a large axe, suddenly shift his hitherto uninterested gaze from Lee to Neo, now curious.

 _"Tell her I'd like an autograph, then make an excuse to leave after you've gotten it."_

And again, both teens missed the man's gaze narrow in suspicion.

"Oh, I totally get what you mean, I've two girls of my own and while the younger one is just the sweetest little thing most of the time, she just _loves_ to blame things on her sister... Who actually _is_ the culprit often enough that sometimes it's difficult to tell if she's lying. But everything's all good so long as nobody gets hurt, right, Neo?"

To that, Neo beamed, nodding enthusiastically while bouncing on her toes. Lee and Summer both chuckled.

"She's a _huge_ fan, if you hadn't already guessed; absolutely _loves_ anything vaguely resembling super heroes, and according to her you're about as close to the real thing as one can get."

"Oho? The way you speak, it's almost as if you're implying that you don't agree?"

Lee smirked. "Eh, I'm more a Taiyang fan myself. But you're still pretty awesome."

A swift punch to the ribs a la Neo, followed by a pained grunt from Lee, had Summer and her larger companion chuckling... While even the Ice Queen couldn't help but crack a smile. Though, Lee suspected that was more due to his comment than Neo's abuse.

"Well, at least you didn't say Qrow."

"I would still _love_ an autograph though. Not quite as much as Neo here would, but still." Cue the polite smiles and proffered pen and autograph books.

"Yeah, sure, it's the least I can do for you two after brightening my day a little bit.

.

..

...

Alrighty, there ya go. And as much as I'd like to stick around and chat, I had better get going before my companions here resort to dragging me away by force. Stay out of trouble, you two!"

"You too, Ms. Rose! Good hunting out there!"

"Thanks!"

And with one last smile and wave, Lee and Neo turned and walked away, vibrating with an energy that made them seem for all the world like a pair of teenagers who had just met one of their idols. And they maintained this facade all the way down the town's main street and beyond the municipal limits, making their way into the tree line of the surrounding forest.

Once there, the facade abruptly dropped. In Neo's case, she went from being a hyperactive little ball of energy to... A slightly less hyperactive little ball of energy. Neo was Neo, and Neo tended to be amused by just about anything... Bonus points if it was something that someone else would find amusing as well. And, Lee had to admit, her behavior for the last little while _had_ been entertaining. But he himself was frowning; he had confirmed their target, so he now had to report it in. He stifled a sigh while reaching for his mic.

"Queen, Sky. Come in."

 _"I'm listening, Sky. Go ahead."_

"It's her, no doubt about it."

 _"Good, good, that means we can proceed with the plan."_

"Aye, ma'am. Soft Serve and I are headed in right now."

 _"Very well. I'll see you when you get here."_

"You got it, ma'am. Sky out."

 _Click._

* * *

 _After that, it was a decent walk to our camp in the woods, which probably took us about an hour to complete. Which, I know, seems stupid when Neo could have just teleported us there, but teleporting actually causes a significant drain on her Aura (which is why, after using it 4 times in quick succession, Neo didn't join us for the fight against the Xiongs), and we were in Grimm infested territory; it wouldn't do for her to be tired if the Grimm showed up. It also wouldn't do for me to attract the Grimm with all the negative thoughts I was having, so I forced myself to think of lighter topics, such as planning my next prank on Mercury, or the designs for a new weapon I was working on; my gauntlets had served me well against the Xiongs, but I had quickly decided that it would be a good idea to become proficient with something other than my limbs, allowing me the opportunity to potentially surprise an opponent by switching between fighting styles... But, that's not exactly relevant to the episode I'm detailing now; while that is what I was thinking about, it wouldn't become important for quite some time, so let's move on._

 _After we returned to camp, we spent a little bit of time filling Cinder, Merc, and Emerald in on Summer and her two companions... But after that, it was just a matter of waiting. At least two of us were on watch at all times, since Cinder had purposefully parked us near one of the Beowulf dens Summer and her companions were here to eradicate. And because we were so close to the Grimm, she had also ordered us to keep things as lighthearted as possible... Which meant we were, rather uncharacteristically, I might add, playing games to pass the time. And it seemed to work, our collective mood seeming to disguise us from the nearby creatures of Grimm... For an entire week. Unfortunately for us, we had chosen what would become Summer and her group's final target for our ambush..._

* * *

 **A short chapter, I know, but I couldn't really add too much else to it without it needing to turn into a really long chapter. And I know that some readers find it difficult to keep their attention span on a single subject if it drags on longer than expected, so I figured it would be better to split this chapter. Which, I'll add, has been an absolute blast to write, albeit somewhat difficult; the main challenge has been trying to write for Summer, whom has never appeared except in that one photo, while keeping her believable. This means modeling her personality into someone you could believe raised both Ruby and Yang, and passed on at least some of her personality traits to both. For those of you who decide to review, please please please let me know what you thought of my take on her this chapter, I need to know!**

 **On another note, I've finally reached the point (at least as far as planning the story goes) where Cinder needs to establish herself at Beacon if she's going to become a professor. And since that's what you guys voted for, that's what's going to happen. However, there are still a few variations of how I could have the remaining four get in, which I have created a new poll for, accessible via my profile. It basically comes down to whether or not all four of them will enroll together, or if Cinder will decide to split them up two and two, and in the case of the latter, whether I'll use OCs for Lee and Neo's teammates or the Malachites.**

 **Also, since a certain threshold was both passed and quite frankly blown away with the amount of response I got from the last chapter...**

"Vegeta, what's the tracker say about this fic's view count?"

"IT'S OVER NINE THOUSAND!" *crushes tracker*

 **You guys are awesome. 2.5k views (in addition to all the follows, favs, and reviews) in less than 48 hours. Thanks fam! xD**

 **-CS**


	15. Chapter 12: Escalation Part 4

_**Just a quick A/N before moving forward, since one reviewer caught something that I was hoping would slip completely under the radar: Yes, Summer Rose should already be dead, for close to a decade by this point. However, besides just being a convenient plot device for this arc, there is another reason. However, that won't be mentioned for quite a while, so for now just treat it as applied phlebotinum, and leave it in the corner ^_^. Kudos to harrypotter9398 for catching that.**_

 **Volume 1, Chapter 12**

 **Escalation, Part** **4**

* * *

 **M: +5 D: +13**

 **(1 week later)**

 **Mid Afternoon**

Lee... Did _not_ usually like the rain; under normal circumstances, rain was associated with cold weather, which would feel even colder with all the water clinging to any exposed skin and seeping into clothing, and constantly having to clear it out of your eyes. It sucked, to put it bluntly. However, if it happened to rain _lightly_ during the _summer_ , like it was currently, then Lee absolutely _loved_ it. The cool sensation of the water on his face, contrasting nicely with the heat that would otherwise be permeating the air... _Perfect_ , so long as he kept the water out of his eyes. And since he was currently wearing a pair of aqua tinted clubmasters, that wasn't exactly an issue, especially considering that technology on Remnant had apparently advanced to the point that water repelling lenses were a thing, so he didn't even have to periodically stop in order to clear stray rivulets of the substance from his glasses. Allowing him to dance in it completely unfettered.

Too bad his solo dancing could only be called sub-par at best.

"I... Have no words to describe what I've just witnessed."

And apparently, that hadn't even been his best. Lee just laughed as he turned towards Emerald, who was scrutinizing him with an amused grin on her face. Next to her, he could see Neo sporting a similar visage. The ladies were currently seated beneath a canopy, which was just large enough to cover all 5 camping chairs, if they were packed back to back in two lines.

"Hey, don't hate just because you're too much of a wimp to dance in the rain! It feels _good_ after a week out here with no running water."

"You're a guy! You don't have to worry about your make up running every where!"

Lee... Blinked uncomprehendingly, not that they could see it behind his shades. But they would see the blank expression he was currently leveling them with.

"Seriously? There's a den of Ursa not 500 meters away, and you're worried about your appearance."

To their credit, both girls seemed to realize just how stupid it was when put like that, and flushed. But, still, neither moved an inch.

"Oh for chup's sake, I _live_ with the both of you! It's not like I haven't seen you ladies without the makeup before! You both look great even without it, so why not just wash it off and then enjoy the rain? Have fun, and be happy like we're _supposed_ to be doing in order to avoid the Grimm cottoning on to us? Eh?"

"But..."

Lee raised an eyebrow (which, with how high he raised it, the girls _could_ see) and cocked his head to the side, waiting to see what excuse Emerald would come up with. Neo, however, seemed to have given up, if the soft sigh followed by an amused smirk were any indication. One moment, she was leaning over to whisper something into Emerald's ear, and the next?

"Woah!"

The next found Lee very nearly sprawling face first into the turf as he suddenly found himself with around 80 pounds of extra weight on his shoulders. However, a near-instinctual activation of his semblance allowed him to quickly regain his balance, before he straightened up with a grin, making sure to clamp his hands around the offending object's calves. He tilted his head as far up as he could go without pushing it off his shoulders, and rolled his eyes as far up as they'd go, just barely managing to catch Neo's amused smile.

"Haha! Nice try, but you'll have to try harder than that to take me down!"

So of course Lee found himself flat on his back not a second later. While he'd been craning his neck upwards to taunt Neo, he'd made the most basic of rookie mistakes and completely forgotten about Emerald, who had taken full advantage of the situation to shoulder tackle him at the waist. Lee, in a moment of panic, had slackened his grip on Neo... Which was all she needed in order to escape, rolling forward with Lee's upper body (he had bowed at the spine when Emerald tackled him) to get clear before teleporting a few feet forwards into a standing position, while Lee went down.

Despite it all, he could not help but laugh.

"Oho, so you like to play rough, huh? Well, then, let's pla _aaaaaa_ aay-hey-hey! S-stop!"

Emerald had, while Lee was monologuing, scrambled so that she was straddling his waist, at which point she proceeded to repeatedly jam her fingers into his ribs; or, to put it simply, she hit him with a tickle attack.

"Bla- aha- ast! You've discovered my-ay-hy-hy weakness! Hahaha!"

And, try as he might, he simply could not fend Emerald, who herself was laughing, off, as Neo had teleported back over and was holding onto his arms, leaving his ribs wide open to Emerald's assault. All he could do was try to wriggle and writhe away... But, that was unsuccessful, and, considering their current position, it merely caused another problem. Both froze when they noticed, identical deer in the headlight expressions on their faces. Neo, for her part, just looked back and forth between the two in confusion.

"I-is that..?"

"Y _eeee_ aaaaaah..." Lee awkwardly drawled, not sure what else to really say. If he were watching this from the outside, he'd probably find Emerald's expression, a rather curious mix of shock, embarrassment, and morbid fascination hilarious. But, seeing as he was at the epicenter of this situation, as opposed to observing it happen? It was awkward as hell.

Neither moved.

Neo, however, finally figured out what had happened... And proceeded to belly laugh. Causing both of the compromised teens to flush even deeper.

"S-shut your face! I can't really control that!"

Neo just fixed him with a smug grin, before speaking (out loud): "I know, I know; I'm laughing more at the fact that you seem to like being held down."

Lee, who indeed was still pinned by the combination of Emerald straddling him and Neo holding his arms, couldn't do anything but frown... And go an even deeper shade of red. "Yeah, well, _you_ try being a guy and have one girl sit on your crotch while the other one has her _wet_ boobs just inches from your face..."

Neo paused in her laughter before looking down to her own chest, then back to Lee's eyes, which were pointedly _not_ looking that direction... And she proceeded to lose it once again, this time letting go of his arms so she could roll onto her side, where she continued to laugh. Leaving Lee and Emerald, the latter of whom was still seated on his... Waist. And her expression had gone from that mix of shock, embarrassment, and morbid fascination... To plain thoughtful. Lee raised a brow, and was in the process of opening his mouth to ask her what she was thinking about... And thus failed to contain the gasp that forced its way out when Emerald very deliberately shifted her hips in a slow circle.

"Oh crap, sorry! Did that hurt?!"

Had it not been raining, Lee would have taken his glasses off so he could deadpan her in the eye. However, doing that would have merely resulted in him inevitably being splashed in the eye, so he settled for raising a single brow up over the edge of his sunglasses... After taking a deep breath (and ignoring the fact that Neo was in serious danger of asphyxiation by this point).

"No, quite the opposite, actually. And while I don't exactly _mind_ being part of your little science experiment, I'm pretty sure this is neither the time nor the place..."

Both turned their heads to glance at Neo, who gave them her best 'Don't Mind Me' stare.

Emerald finally clambered off of him, before offering him a hand.

"You're probably right about that, Lee."

"Girl please, I'm _always_ right!" Lee retorted while accepting the helping hand. Of course, this led to him expecting her to drop him... But, she didn't. However, he did notice there were two sets of eyes that most certainly were not trained on his face.

"Ladies, please, my face is up here." And with a wink, Lee began to stroll away. "Anywho, I'm going to go relieve Mercury before this situation can become any more awkward. See you later!"

* * *

 _Of all the things I had expected to happen on our little camping trip, being accidentally molested by Emerald, with an assist from Neo, was not on the list. And, back on Earth, I probably wouldn't have had reason to complain. As it was, my mind flashed back to my previous conversation with Mercury on the subject of me and Emerald... And then even further back to the time Neo and I were talking about age of consent, not long after joining this crew. At the time, it had just been a tangent off of a joke taken perhaps just a little bit too far... But now, with Emerald and I having some sort of thing between us, and what had just happened, it was simply a matter of time before the subject came up, and I would have to have a serious conversation with her about it. But, again, that's a story for a later date; for now, I'll be focusing on what else went down on that mission... No pun intended._

 _As I had said, I went to relieve Mercury on lookout duty, in order to avoid the girls for a little while; being about an hour early, and with our watch rotation being staggered so only one person was relieved at a time, I wouldn't be seeing either of them until it was time for Cinder to come off watch, which wouldn't be for at least a few hours. It would allow me some time to calm down... Or at least, that was the plan. Because of course, with my luck, it would end up being during my watch that our target would finally enter the engagement area..._

* * *

 ** _Hmm... I suppose I could have left that as one single chapter. Though the time skip in the middle of it might have been awkward. Oh well. Now that Summer and Co. have all but walked into the ambush, we can get to the action next chapter. Yay! :D_**

 ** _Current Poll Standings:_**

 ** _CMSN: 8_**

 ** _ERMN + CMMN: 6_**

 ** _ERMN + CRLN: 1_**


	16. Chapter 13: Escalation, Part 5

_**Soundtrack (this chapter only): v=ipMNjr-VuSo**_

 _ **Soundtrack (This through the end of Escalation):**_ ** _v=Ixdp35Zpy7s_**

* * *

 **Volume 1, Chapter 8**

 **Escalation, Part 5**

* * *

 **Sunset**

 **(A few hours later)**

"You ready for this, Lee?"

Lee glanced sideways at his teammate; currently, he and Emerald were concealed in the lower branches of a tree, overlooking the trail Summer and her companions would take to get back to the village, now that they had dealt with most of the Grimm in the area. The two of them had been on watch when the fighting had broken out, so, after reporting it to Cinder, they had crept closer so that they could actually watch... And had been surprised to find that there had been a giant Deathstalker in the area as well, in addition to the den of Ursa. The Hunters had had little trouble with the Ursa, but even they had been surprised by the Deathstalker, resulting in it managing to get a couple of hits in on the large man, who was the slowest of the three, before they had recovered and managed to take it down. In any other circumstance, Lee would have starstruck. Instead, he felt like he was going to be sick. Not that he was about to tell Emerald that.

Lee forcibly swallowed his revulsion.

"Yeah," he replied as he pulled a balaclava over his head, then donned a pair of goggles, and tied a bandanna around the lower half of his face. "Let's get this over with."

"I still think you're going overboard with all of that."

Lee frowned at Emerald, who was content with just a balaclava tucked into her long sleeved gray shirt (which they were all wearing), before remembering that his face was completely covered.

"Yeah, well, they've already seen me and Neo. No need to risk them connecting me with that kid who asked Summer for her autograph last week."

"Oh yeah."

"Yup. Now shush, the last thing we need is to blow our cover too early."

Emerald glared at him, but desisted from speaking any further, opting instead to watch the trail; their targets should be approaching any minute now...

The duo exchanged a quick glance when they finally saw the Hunter trio approaching... Which meant that their other three teammates should be able to see them as well.

"Not one foot out of step..." Lee muttered to himself as he began to focus Aura in his hand, just waiting for the signal...

* * *

 ** _Start the Soundtrack Here!_**

 ** _(But only if you're using Velocitron!)_**

* * *

Impossibly, the lone male of the Hunter group froze, turning his gaze directly on his hiding place.

Lee's eyes went wide as the Hunter's two companions turned to him and began to converse. Between the rain (which had become heavier since earlier that afternoon) and the distance between him and the Hunters, he couldn't hear exactly what was being said, but with the way the big guy was tensed up and looking _right at him_ , he didn't exactly need to be able to. Fortunately, however, Cinder had seemed to catch on as well, as the group suddenly scattered in order to dodge a rapidly fired trio of arrows.

Lee didn't waste any more time, choosing his target and punching the air several times in quick succession, causing several small bolts of Stone dust to fly... And was rewarded with a pained grunt as they all shattered against the Ice Queen's back. Emerald didn't waste any time either, having jumped to another tree the moment Lee had fired, moving through the forest canopy to get closer. Lee didn't have time to reflect on her odds of being successful, however, as he found himself being forced to dive down to ground level in order to avoid a swarm of summoned... Ice... Bird... Thingies?

 _'What the chup?'_

Despite his confusion, Lee didn't allow it to distract him, as that would very likely prove deadly in this situation; instead, he tucked himself into a roll, and managed to hit the ground running, vectoring straight at the group; on the other side, he could see another figure doing the same. Mercury, if the size and build were any indication.

True to their veteran status, however, the Hunter group reacted admirably. Rather than assuming they held the advantage and rushing out to fight them one on one, the trio stayed relatively close to each other, enough space between them that they could fight comfortably as well as not be hit by a single explosion, but not so far apart that they couldn't quickly help one another if needed. Were they only fighting Lee and Mercury, it would be all but a guaranteed win for the Hunters; while Lee and Merc were both very dangerous opponents in close combat, and the latter could _probably_ go toe to toe with one of the three arrayed against them in a fair fight, they still, as far as the Huntsmen knew, had at least one more ally who was currently content to heckle them from afar with arrows... And probably more than just that, if they were confident enough to attack a group containing both Summer Rose and Winter Schnee. All correct assumptions... But, if Lee had anything to say about it, it wouldn't be enough.

Rather than attack the first of their targets to get in his way, Lee rolled under Winter's slash and kept going, not even stopping on his way towards who he was truly after.

"Spring! Move!"

The hastily shouted warning wouldn't save him, however; if anything, it did exactly the opposite. By the time Winter had realized what Lee was going to do, he was already doing it, and distracted as he was with fighting Mercury, Spring didn't have much chance to react; by the time he managed to create enough space to swing his axe at Mercury, which he _probably_ intended to carry into a full spin and thus deal with Lee, Lee had already moved into position.

Lee, who had rolled into a crouch just short of the large man, Spring, planting his left foot down so he would come to a complete stop. However, his momentum was preserved by allowing the right half of his body to continue forward. Add in that Lee had drawn his fist back as far as it could go, before shooting it forward with his whole body lined up behind it...

"Falcon, PAWNCH!"

And, to his pleasant surprise, he _actually_ managed to make the flames into the shape of a falcon when his fist slammed into Spring's solar plexus. But he didn't have long to celebrate, because even though it knocked the large man backwards a few feet, the momentum of his swing had been preserved, meaning that it was that very fact that caused Lee to take a glancing blow to the head from the haft of the axe, causing Lee to stagger... And very nearly get skewered by an enraged Winter Schnee, whose saber passed within an inch of his head.

"Woah!"

"Whoever you are, you're going to regret picking a fight with us!"

Lee merely growled in response before lashing out with a gust of Air Dust, creating some space between himself and Winter, who seemed dead set on facing him; it seemed there was to be a Wizard's Duel. Seeing as Mercury was currently keeping the big guy busy, Summer seemed to be searching for Cinder, who was still firing arrows into the battle, and he knew that he had two more allies who would likely jump in if things got too hairy, he was content to oblige; while Winter was still righting herself, Lee followed up his attack with another flurry of Earth bolts... Which Winter handily dodged with a back handspring, which she transitioned into a forward roll along the same path, which transitioned into a corkscrew... From which a wave of ice pellets was launched back at Lee.

He _may_ have been slightly too busy being impressed by the maneuver in order to mount a proper counter... But he _did_ retain enough awareness to simply drop to a prone position, managing to avoid most of the attack but taking a few glancing blows. From this position, he performed a prone kip up, aided by a gust of Air, before landing on his feet once again, where he soon found himself under assault by another wave of the Ice Bird Thingies. Lee attempted to capture the swirling Dust with his own aura, reform it into a coiling spear, and then throw it at Winter... But he quickly found that the things were not Dust based.

 _They're alive then?_

As... _Interesting_ as that was, trying to study the phenomenon while currently under assault by it would probably end up getting him killed, so he instead simply made the mental note to treat them like actual birds, just made of Aura. So, assuming they would still be governed by the laws of physics, Lee activated his semblance, then, carefully drawing on his glove's supplies of Air Dust, and began to weave his hands in a circle, widening them as he went until he'd gone from holding a small ball of swirling Air to a personal mini-tornado, which successfully captured the Ice Bird Thingies... Until they dissipated. Satisfied, Lee allowed the tornado to dissipate as well... Then nearly had a heart attack as he just narrowly dodged a saber thrust aimed at his face. Mentally, Lee swore.

 _This schutta is going down!_

With Winter once again so close, and exhibiting such speed, Lee had no choice but to keep his semblance active; in order to react fast enough to perfectly dodge each of her rapid fire thrusts, he was having to speed his perception up even more than usual. Which, if Emerald's complaints about trying to use her own hallucination inducing abilities on more than one target could be taken as any indication, meant that he would probably be paying for it with a headache later... And not just because he'd already taken a couple of hard knocks there. But he'd rather have a headache than a new opening in his face.

After a few more thrusts, Lee finally maneuvered into a position that, when she tried again, this time with more extension than the shallow thrusts she had been making, he was able to lean back and to the side, reaching up with his left hand to grip the narrow blade around the middle. Grinning beneath his disguise, Lee then straightened up, while pushing the blade towards the opposite side of his body without letting go; Winter, who _might_ have done what Lee did earlier and become distracted by the improbable feat of grabbing a live blade, had maintained her grip and thus been thrown off balance by the maneuver. Lee took advantage of this by using his free right hand to punch her in the shoulder, dislocating it with a sickening pop, and causing her to both drop her weapon and yell out in pain.

"Winter!"

Lee turned towards the worried male voice just in time to receive a boot to the face.

Had Lee been in a professionally sanctioned setting, his Aura would have been in the red after that. As it was, he was sent staggering backwards... Where he found himself the target of a leaping round house kick that would have connected clean with his temple had he not lost his balance and tripped at the last second. The world above him seemed to be spinning, and there was a faint ringing in his ears...

Vaguely, Lee was aware he probably had a concussion, which, combined with the added strain of his semblance for the last several minutes, meant he was going to have one hell of a headache once the adrenaline wore off... But he still had one, possibly two opponents actively gunning for him, so the adrenaline had yet to wear off. Despite his impaired senses, Lee managed to grab the ankle of the boot attempting to descend on his face and wrenched it to the side, causing its owner, Winter, to lose her balance, which Lee took advantage of by sweeping her other foot out from beneath her, causing her to fall flat on her face beside him. Fortunately for him, the impact seemed to briefly daze her, allowing him the time to shakily rise to his feet, before drawing his foot back and punt kicking her in the face. Needless to say, Winter immediately lost consciousness after that one.

Lee, at that point, was barely hanging on, sheer willpower preventing him from joining her in the land of the unconscious. With considerable difficulty, Lee forced himself to focus, looking around the battlefield... And was satisfied with what he saw. Off to the one side, Mercury and Emerald were still fighting the large axe wielding Hunter, Spring. All looked considerably worse for wear... But, Mercury and Emerald were in slightly better shape than Spring was, who himself seemed to be approaching the same levels Lee had been at before being sucker kicked. Which, Lee had to concede, was only fair after the way he'd started the fight. Didn't leave him any less angry about it though. But, before he could start looking for an opportunity to settle that score, he needed to make sure things were going smoothly with Summer...

They were, just not for her. Cinder, at some point, had finally gotten tired of her dodging arrows, and decided to move in to melee range with her twin swords, and had kept her out of both of the other fights ever since. The two would have likely been about even matched... Except that Neo was tag-teaming with Cinder, keeping Summer, who appeared to be fighting with twin katars, indefinitely on the defensive. She was still relatively unscathed though, meaning that Lee would probably be more welcomed in that fight... _If_ he wasn't in danger of collapsing at any moment. So, since he could not reliably help out there, he decided to enter the other fight.

As cool as it would have been to open up with some sort of one liner, Lee wasn't quite so impaired that he actually thought that would be a good idea; he _was_ trying to ambush the guy, after all, and unlike when he did it to Da Hui Xiong, this guy wasn't expecting Lee to be on his side. There was also the added complication of him apparently being able to detect Aura...

 _Chup it. I just need to distract him l_ _ong enough for Emerald and Mercury to finish him off, then go help Cinder._

Placing his left hand on a tree trunk to brace himself, Lee began to draw on the final bits of Earth Dust crystals in his right glove, drawing it out into several dozen tiny little spears...

Spring, of course, saw it coming as soon as the fight forced him to turn his head that direction. But, busy fending off two separate opponents as he was, he was finding himself hard pressed to find away to avoid the attack. Despite the situation, Lee could not help but grin beneath the mask.

 _Checkmate, asshole!_

Lee flung his hand forward with a roar, using the last of his fading consciousness to keep the fusillade directed towards Spring...

He collapsed against the tree before he could see whether or not it was a hit.

* * *

 ** _So... Is the suspense killing you yet? Because it's killing me! Haha I had initially planned on Summer's companions being taken care of quite quickly, but the temptation for a wizard's duel was just too much! Haha :D Poor Winter just wasn't quite able to beat Lee... But, to be fair, the only reason Lee won that was because he landed a solid hit before the fight even began, and managed to surprise her by pulling a Jaime Lannister and grabbing her sword with his gauntlets. Lol had that been a tournament style duel, Lee would have probably gotten his ass handed to him. Hell, he still did, for that matter. He just managed to stay conscious longer ^_^_**


	17. Chapter 14, Escalation Part 6

**_So... I'm currently away from home, and while I remembered to bring my computer, I MAY have forgotten my charger. So, rather than make both myself and all of you wait a whole week to continue the story, I've resorted to using my phone. Unfortunately, the doc manager on ff is NOT configured for the iPhone, so there a few spots that are not formatted properly (including the fact that I'm pitting my author's note at the beginning instead of the end) which will be corrected this weekend once I can get on my computer._**

 ** _Soundtrack: v=OAbFRNeIfxI_**

* * *

 **Volume 1, Chapter 14**

 **Escalation, Part 6**

* * *

 **Neo**

Despite the gravity of the situation, Neo was having the time of her life; fighting side by side with Cinder, against an opponent who was successfully fending the both of them off? It was like a dream come true for the pint sized bundle of terror! The only thing that could possibly make it better would be if she was fighting side by side with her _charmer_ of a partner... But, she supposed, one couldn't always have it all. The plan had originally called for Lee and Neo to deal with the axe-wielding lummox while Mercury and Emerald kept the Schnee busy... However, that plan had gone out the window the moment the axe man had spotted Lee. Not that she blamed him; how were they supposed to know he could apparently detect Dust? Or... maybe it was Aura usage in general? Whichever it was, it had thrown a wrench in their plan, turning a text book ambush into a full-blown skirmish. Which Neo was perfectly okay with; it meant she got to fight somebody who would actually present a challenge. And the situation even got bonus points for giving Lee a challenging opponent too!

 **"Rrraaarrrrrgggggghhhh!"**

Beneath her 'mask' (which was identical to Lee's), Neo giggled silently; speak of the devil and he shall appear! She was _so_ going to tease Lee for that one later. But, alas, she was busy at the moment, so she couldn't exactly turn to see just what he'd done that required such a _bestial_ roar.

"Lee!"

* * *

 ** _Start the soundtrack here!_**

* * *

Two sets of eyes widened; Neo's, because from the distress in Emerald's shout, things were _not_ going well for Lee. Summer's, because, well...

"Neo?!"

Shit. There went their effort to make sure she and Lee wouldn't be linked to this. Stupid Emerald... Still, even if it seemed obvious that the... _vertically challenged_ person accompanying someone named Lee was most likely the same vertically challenged teenager from a week ago, Neo wasn't about to confirm it for her. After all, there had to still be room for doubt, right? She and Lee had been so _nice!_ As long as Summer didn't get a chance to confirm her suspicion, she'd pretty much _have_ to question whether her logic leap had been correct, or if instead it was just a coincidence that one of her assailants was named Lee and the other one was vertically challenged...

Speaking of Lee... _Hmm_. Seeing as they had all been busy fighting, she shouldn't just assume Emerald was going to step out to make sure her boy toy was still in one piece and breathing, right? As stupid as the two had started to make each other recently, Neo was relatively certain that Emerald was still smart enough to realize that she and Mercury needed to deal with their own opponent before she could move to help Lee... Which meant it would be up to her.

Neo pushed back against her opponent, while also leaping into a back flip, allowing Cinder, wearing identical outfits to the rest of them but opting to wear only a veil around the lower half of her face, to move in with her twin blades and press the assault. Neo herself used the brief respite to look towards where she'd heard Lee roar... And was alarmed to see him slumped against a tree, completely immobile. Granted, she was too far away to see if he was breathing or not... But she quickly assured herself that based on the sound of his voice, he'd _probably_ just exerted himself too hard and passed out. A theory supported by the equally unconscious yet intact Schnee, not 2 meters away from him. Huh. If he'd expended that much effort trying to bring her down and actually succeeded, Neo imagined that it would have been a lot... Messier. Not to mention she probably would have ended up quite a bit further away, considering the sheer amount of Aural (with a capital A!) power he was capable of bringing to bear at times. _Especially_ if he'd used so much that that he'd knocked himself unconscious. So if it wasn't the Schnee...

 _Oh_. That explained it. Lee hadn't been aiming for the Schnee; he'd gone after the lummox with the axe. And while it looked like the guy had managed to avoid the worst of it (between, as she would later find out, a timely dodge and covering his face and neck with the dual blade of his axe), Lee had still managed to pelt him with a decent amount of stone, visibly tearing up the man's clothes and leaving him with several visible cuts and bruises. However, impossibly, the big bastard was still going strong, despite being battered, bruised, and just a little bit bloody. Which was better than could be said for Mercury and Emerald, the latter of whom appeared to be exhausted while the former was on his last leg after going limb to axe for so long... Pun intended.

No, seriously, one of Merc's bionic legs had just been truncated just below the knee.

"Go! I can handle this!"

Well, she didn't need to be told twice; if even Cinder was worried, the situation was in dire. So with nary a thought for trying to help Cinder any more, Neo drew the dagger from the end of her umbrella and used her semblance for the first time that battle, teleporting to just behind him. However, just as Lee and Cinder had, Neo had noticed that the man could detect Aura... Or possibly Dust itself while it was being used. Either way, Neo decided to play it safe and assume it was Aura. And judging by the fact he was still standing after fighting Mercury, Emerald, and Lee for so long, she was willing to bet his reflexes were going to be quicker than one might otherwise expect. So while she did do the obvious thing and teleport directly behind him, she did _not_ move on to the next obvious action, which would have been to go for the backstab. While the big man whirled faster than his size would suggest was possible, Neo tucked herself into a ball and rolled between his legs, before coming back up with blade extended... Directly into the man's side.

"Ach! Bugger!"

Neo giggled smugly at the man before leaping backwards out of range... causing blood to begin to spurt out from the new hole in his side.

"You little shit! I'll kill ya!"

With her face covered up as it was, the man couldn't see the smug smirk she was wearing... But the flourishing bow she performed should have _more_ than made it clear what she thought of that proclamation; she couldn't have said "well why don't you come try?" any clearer if she had actually _said_ it! Well, okay, that was an exaggeration, but she wasn't about to waste her voice on this oaf. Besides, if the roar of sheer rage he let out before rushing at her was any indication, she'd _clearly_ managed to get her point across _anyway_.

Neo giggled as she sidestepped the over hand blow, allowing the axe to stick into the loamy soil for a crucial moment while she stepped forwards and thrust her dagger into the man's thigh, just above the knee, before ducking under a backhand. Neo ripped the blade out with a roughness that belied her small frame and sidestepped back in the direction she came from, before slamming a fist forward into the man's testicles, _finally_ causing him to hunch over. With a satisfied giggle, Neo stepped back and away, allowing him to drop to the ground, hands cupping the afflicted area of his anatomy.

 _Of course he tanks every thing else we could throw at him like a boss, only to be downed by a shot to the family jewels. Tsk. Typical man._

Neo wasted no time in knocking the man out with the end of her umbrella. That taken care of, she glanced over to Mercury and Emerald, assessing their condition. Despite being in relatively decent shape, Mercury would be useless without a leg, and would in all likelihood need to be carried away from this fight... Then again, it could be funny to watch him hop on just the one for a while...

 _No, bad Neo! Stay focused!_

She looked towards the other half of that partnership, Emerald. She... actually didn't seem to be doing _too_ badly, despite the fact one of her weapons was now just a useless lump of metal. Between that and Mercury's leg, Neo couldn't help but wonder just what the hell that man's axe had been made of... But, she quickly shook that thought in favor of salvaging the current situation. Of their team of five, one was unconscious and another in decent shape but with severely limited mobility and thus combat ineffective. She and Cinder were both unscathed... But they also hadn't been making any progress against Summer Rose, who had shown no problems in fighting both of them simultaneously. But could the Huntress handle a third opponent?

"Mercury." She whispered, standing over the male of the duo; as much as she normally disliked speaking, she had no other method of communication she could reliably resort to with her face covered up and unable to express. Plus, it was for a good cause: "Go check on Lee."

Lee, Neo was realizing, was capable of drawing so much uncharacteristic behavior out of her, that she was forced to concede that it wasn't really uncharacteristic of her anymore. Sure, speaking out loud was still something that she would not be doing on a regular basis... But the fact remained that she'd now done so on two separate occasions in a single day, and both had been because of Lee. And despite her relatively... _Cloistered_ life thus far, she was not oblivious to why that was; she loved the man. However, despite harboring a small crush on him, she could not quite say she was _in_ love with him; sure, he was attractive, and she enjoyed spending time with him, but were it not for that, she would say she loved him like the brother she had never had. Which was why she could honestly say she was happy to see that... _Whatever_ it was he and Emerald had going on between them was making him happy. Though she had to admit, she was looking forward to finding out _just_ how awkward their situation would become if and when Lee had to explain to Emerald that he absolutely was _not_ going to have sex with her before she turned 18. Hehe. But before any of that could happen, however, they needed to ensure that they would make it out of this fight, which meant she and Emerald needed to help Cinder.

Neo shifted her goggled gaze (as in, she was wearing goggles, not that she was goggling) from where it had been resting on Lee, and shifted it towards Emerald, who was using the current respite to reload her single remaining weapon... Which, now that she thought about it, explained why she hadn't just _shot_ the big bastard once Lee had managed to break through his Aura. She patiently waited for the red-eyed girl to finish, before tilting her head towards the fight between Cinder and Summer.

Emerald, despite the combination of worry and rage clearly visible in her eyes, nodded in affirmation of the unspoken message. In unison, the two turned, before, faster than the untrained eye could detect, they raced into the fray...


	18. A Note From The Author

_**Sorry guys, but this is not a chapter. But don't fret, I'm still working on it! I just wanted to let you guys know that I'm not dead or anything, just sort of having writer's block here. I managed to get about 1000 words in on the next chapter three separate times before completely throwing it out; once through Summer's POV, once through Cinder's, and once through Neo's again (not necessarily in that particular order). However, I decided that I really just don't know enough about the first two in order to feature their thought processes so prominently, while the Neo version was just... Eh. I was able to do it, but I just wasn't feeling it. So now, for the fourth time, I'm about 1000 words in, this time from Lee's perspective. And unlike recent chapters, that 1000 words is pretty filled with details. It's sort of a return to the first few chapters where I was really descriptive about pretty much everything that Lee was seeing/doing. Of course, doing so takes longer... But, in my opinion, the increased quality should more than make up for the longer time in between chapters. Which brings me to my next point...**_

 _ **While I am highly flattered that the anticipation is high enough that some of you have taken the time to ask about the next chapter, and, despite the tone of this message, I do appreciate the input, please refrain from rushing me. Since I am not employed by Roosterteeth and thus don't own or have any part in the making of RWBY, I don't get paid to do this. Seeing as that's the case, I have to make money in other ways... And by other ways, I mean a full time job. Which, in my case, happens to be slamming me with overtime lately. Add that I'm starting college on Monday and that I still have other real life responsibilities and... Well... I sometimes don't have as much time to devote to this as I would like. I'll still do my best to publish chapters at least semi-regularly... But sometimes it just isn't possible. Seeing as I'm still only a third of the way to my target minimum word count for this next chapter, and, like I said, my schedule is going to be in flux for the next couple of weeks, I can't say exactly when I'll have the next one out, but what I am going to try to do is implement an actual publishing schedule. I'm going to try for Sunday evenings, since that seems to be the best time to hit the largest target audience (for obvious reasons ^_^ ), but as for whether I'm able to finish by this (or even next) Sunday, and whether or not I'll be able to write fast enough to keep to a weekly schedule... All I can promise is that I am/will try(ing).**_

 ** _Now that that's out of the way... A note moving forward: While I'm pretty sure that it's been rather clear since the Networking arc, and most certainly reinforced by this one, I'm going to use this opportunity to state it clearly: This story is going to go to some pretty dark places. I'll hold on to the T rating (barely) for a little while longer, but expect it to go M in the very near future due to spurts of graphic violence, probable persistent angst, and... Well, some very crappy options. Such as whether killing or maiming Summer is the kinder sentence. So, to any readers who might find themselves uncomfortable with darker/more violent stories, I do apologize, but consider yourselves warned. Probably no lemons though, despite how much there probably needs to be one with Lee and Emerald in this story's future... Lee is still sort of an SI, and while some authors are comfortable with it, I just can't reconcile the thought of publishing a lemon starring what is essentially an exaggerated and embellished version of myself. Such awkward, much squick. For those of you into that sort of thing (that sort of thing being lemons), I'll still probably leave hints as to some of the things that the characters get up to after the camera fades to black... But I (most likely) won't be writing the actual encounter._**

 ** _Anyway, that's all I had to say. Until next time,_**

 ** _-CeruleanSorbeltz_**


	19. Chapter 15: Escalation Part 7

**Volume 1, Chapter 15**

 **Escalation, Part 7**

* * *

 **Lee**

Consciousness, Lee decided, was severely overrated, when waking up to the worst headache he'd ever had... Which was saying something, considering that, in another universe, he had been old enough to legally get drunk, and _had_ on several occasions. But hangovers, he decided, had absolutely _nothing_ on the pain he was currently experiencing with his _entire_ cerebrum, though the worst of it was most certainly concentrated in his frontal lobe; that, Lee knew, was the result of catching so many hard hits there in such a short span of time. But never before had he had the _entire circumference_ of his brain throb in pain simultaneously, and it was overwhelming, to put it lightly. Had it not been for the constant, brutal spars and rigorous exercise sessions he'd been subjected to for the last half-year, he might have immediately blacked out again. As it was, he still found himself wishing for it.

With a groan, and some barely suppressed tears, Lee forced himself to sit upright, before turning to look at whomever it was he could almost sense sitting near him... Mercury, it seemed, judging by the silvery-grey eyes framed by a pale complexion, which was all he could see beneath his balaclava.

"Did... we win?"

Mercury snorted. "Not yet, but the ladies should be finishing up any minute now. Take a look."

Lee allowed his gaze to follow the path Mercury's finger indicated, and was surprised to see that Summer Rose was still fighting, though her three opponents combined had managed to put her on the back foot. Seeing as Lee himself had dealt with Winter Schnee, who, a quick glance confirmed, was unconscious and had her hands bound behind her (which Lee assumed Mercury must be responsible for), and just a short distance away he could see the unconscious form of Spring, he figured it was only a matter of time. Still...

"Shouldn't you be helping them?"

Mercury just gestured to his legs... Or, rather, leg, singular. One of them had been cleanly severed near the knee, explaining why Mercury was tending to Lee rather than getting in on the fight.

"Oh. I take it the big guy still had some fight left in him after I went down."

"Yup. Though, in all fairness, you did manage to breach his Aura."

Lee stared. "And yet you _still_ managed to get your leg lopped off."

"Hey, at least I stayed conscious!"

"Pfft, as if you have a leg to stand on. Oh, wait..."

"You're an asshole, you know that?"

"Sheesh, Merc, no need to get so _hopping_ mad about it."

"Go to hell."

That definitely worked as a loaded statement, instantly reminding Lee of what they had come there to do.

"Sorry... Trying _not_ to think about this _chupping_ headache I've got going on right now. What's our status? Obviously you're short a limb, and I'm pretty sure that I'm concussed and quite possibly suffering a secondary headache from overexerting my semblance, but what about the ladies?"

"Damn, Lee, that could be serious... You mentioned the headache, but you seem to be able to focus and form coherent sentences. Any dizziness, nausea?"

Lee could _feel_ his irritability rising by the second.

" _N_ _o,_ and no, though I was dizzy and had trouble focusing before I lost consciousness. But I doubt that the actual trauma was anything too serious considering that I'm already awake and in better shape than I was before I succumbed, at least in regard to my mental faculties; my money is on the concussion being minor and I simply exacerbated the accompanying headache by pushing my Semblance past the red line; I _am_ experiencing pain throughout my _entire_ skull right now, instead of just the front. So if that concludes the impromptu medical examination, which it chupping _should_ , could we _please_ move on to something else? Like maybe actually _answering_ the original question?"

" _Annnnd_ I'll add uncharacteristic irritability to the list... If you were a chick, I'd say it was PMS. You're not actually Emerald and just making me hallucinate, are you?"

 _"Mercury!"_

"Alright, alright, calm your tits already! Cinder seems to be alright; I haven't had the chance to actually check, but I haven't seen or heard any evidence of any injuries, so like I said, she's probably alright. Frustrated, no doubt, but alright. Same thing for Neo, but I actually did get to see for myself before hopping on over here; the only thing that might be a problem for her would be her Aura, seeing as she's already teleported twice that I've seen. As for Emerald... Well, she probably has at least a sprained wrist; she tried to block that axe and _would_ have completely lost her hand if it wasn't for the fact she dropped the gun. Which, as you might have guessed from the state of my leg, is completely mangled."

Lee frowned... Then remembered that his entire face was covered and that nobody could see it, forcing him to iterate. "Damn... And that was all _after_ his Aura was breached? I don't even want to _think_ about what he could have done to us if we'd attacked while they were still fresh..."

"Ditto, man, ditto. But hey, it could have been worse; Neo managed to take him down pretty quickly. He lasted all of about sixty seconds, and that was only because she stopped to taunt him half way through it."

Despite the pain, Lee couldn't help but chuckle. "She _would_ go all David and Goliath... Unnh."

After that, the two just sat there propped up against the tree, having run out of useful conversation. And seeing as a martial artist with only one leg and a mage who can't concentrate overly well are both useless in a fight, all they could really do at that point was watch as their allies continued to fight. Lee _tried_ not to feel too emasculated by the situation; after all, he and Mercury were legitimately injured, and had received said injuries from what pretty much amounted to a behemoth with a frighteningly large axe... But the fact remained that they, the menfolk, were sitting there having a (not quite) grand time watching the womenfolk get it on. As in combat, that is; if it was the other way around, that would just be...

 _'For chup's sake, man, focus!'_ Lee dropped that train of thought before it could get him in trouble. _'You may not be actively fighting, but you're still in the middle of a battle!'_

And what a battle it was. With his headache making usage of his semblance somewhat undesirable, Lee couldn't quite see _every_ move that was being made, particularly by the quicker of the current combatants, but what he could successfully see and keep up with was nothing short of enthralling. While it was clear that with the addition of a third opponent, Summer Rose had been forced to remain almost purely on the defensive... But, nevertheless, she was successfully making life difficult for her three assailants. Cinder backs off and tries to get a shot off with her bow? Summer closes on Emerald or Neo and keeps them close enough that Cinder risks friendly fire. Cinder gets frustrated and charges back into the fray before Summer can take out one of her minions. And the same sequence of events happens should Emerald try to employ a similar tactic. But at the same time, the fact that there are three of them prevents Summer from launching more than the occasional counter stroke, for fear of the two not under attack managing to land solid hits. Yet, she was mounting such a nearly perfect defense, that, barring any sudden changes in the situation, the fight would end up being decided by who lost the battle of attrition. So of course Lee began searching for ways to change the situation in their favor. If only he didn't have such a damn head... Ache...

 _'How did I forget about that!'_

"Gem!"

All four combatants briefly glanced in his direction, before diving back in to a new flurry of attack and defense. But, sure enough, the one named managed to disengage after a few seconds of that, and quickly made her way over, managing to look both relieved and annoyed.

"Whatever it is, Sky, make it quick!"

"Do you your headache medication with you?"

"Yes, but I haven't even used my semblance y-"

"I have, and I found my limit. Gimme."

Anger. "Seriously?! Can't that wait?!"

Frustration. "Me mage! Mage unable to magic if mage unable to concentrate!"

Offense, mixed with realization. "Oh.

.

..

..

"Here you go."

Gratitude. "Thanks. Now go keep her busy, I should be good to go here pretty soon."

A quick nod, and Emerald was off... Leaving Lee sitting there holding a bottle of pills and Mercury looking at him with something akin to awe... Or as close as he allowed himself to get, from what Lee could see of his face.

"What? She's a nag, not unreasonable. Besides, I'll probably end up paying for that one later. For now, though, I've got odds to tip." With that, Lee opened the bottle, plucked out two of the pills within (per the directions on the label), and proceeded to dry swallow them.

.

..

...

"Holy shtak."

In a matter of seconds, Lee's headache had all but disappeared, leaving only a dull yet manageable throb concentrated under his forehead, which had before felt as if it was going to pop from the pressure. Which, now that he could actually _concentrate,_ Lee realized was not a good thing when dealing with head injuries... But, assuming the pills actually did what they said and actually reduced the swelling along with numbing the pain, he should be good to go now.

"Merc, remind me to ask Emerald where she gets this stuff, because that, my friend, is most definitely the good shit _._ "

Lee didn't need to see it to know that Mercury's incredulous gaze had been replaced by a deadpan stare.

"Here, hold on to these for me while I go finish this."

Mercury accepted the pills Lee dropped into his lap as he stood up, and began to grumble.

"What am I, your secretary?"

"Nah, you don't have the legs to rock a skirt."

Lee didn't stick around to watch Mercury process that one... Though, as he stalked closer to the fight, he did hear Mercury's shouted "Hey!"

Leg jokes were never going to get old.

 _'Focus, Lee. Gotta stay frosty.'_

Desired mental state achieved, Lee activated his semblance and began to think tactically. As he noted earlier, Summer was successfully keeping at least one of her opponents within arms reach at all time, so attempting to pick her off from range was out of the question; the odds of friendly fire were just too high. So that left closing in to melee... Where he would have to contend with her pair of katars, which, if they had been forged correctly, would have a reinforced point and thus be capable of punching right through his gauntlets... But, with three, soon to be four people attacking her, she likely would not find time or space needed to actually wind up the punch needed, so it was an acceptable risk. All he really needed was a window of opportuni-

 _"Lee, I'm gonna go for her legs in a moment. Get her while she's in the air."_

-ty. Well, that would do. While he was a little skeptical of Neo planning a coordinated assault, a quick glance at everyone's positioning confirmed that, as long as Summer didn't decide to just tank the hit to the legs or take a sword through the abdomen, it _should_ work.

 _"Go!"_

Lee rushed forwards, eyes darting around to take in everything that was happening. After a brief clash of weapons, Emerald and Summer pushed away from each other, the latter of those spinning to deflect a stroke from Cinder, who stood her ground and simply twisted out of the way of Summer's follow up punch, the point of the katar missing by the slimmest of margins. However, Summer couldn't carry on the sudden assault because Neo had rushed her from the side, aiming a swipe with the handle of her umbrella at Summer's leg... And on the other side, Emerald had shifted her weapon from its sickle form into kusarigama mode, and was making a swing towards just behind Summer, where she'd dodge if she intended to just let Neo fly past her... Which she didn't. She jumped, tucking her knees into her chest to allow Neo to pass beneath her...

And just barely twisted far enough to parry Lee's leaping punch by catching it with the bottom of her foot and then pushing off, sending her flying off to the one side while Lee hit the ground running, already charging Aura and infusing Dust into his hands; that maneuver had left them all on the same side relative to Summer, so they could afford to use a few ranged attacks now, which he made sure to take advantage of as he charged, sending one, two, three bolts of electricity towards her as he approached, forcing her to concentrate on dodging instead of using the opportunity to load her own weapons... Which, Lee could now see, had pistols integrated into them. When held perpendicular to the ground, the gun barrels would be integrated into the bottom guard... Or the outside, if held parallel. Meaning she fired them 'upside down' like a certain Shinigami.

Lee arrived moments later, preventing him from spending too long examining Summer the Kid. And seeing as he was the only one whose momentum had carried him the same direction as Summer, he was going to have to fight her one on one for at least a few seconds, long enough for his other allies to show up.

 _'Oh shit. Deflect, deflect, jab jab cross, WAIT WHAT THE CHUP AM I DOING HER HUSBAND IS A BOXER! Dodge, duck, dip, dive, and DOOOOOOOOODGE!'_

To translate Lee's frantic thought process, the moment he'd closed in on Summer, she had attempted a quick one-two punch against his torso, which had been deflected to the sides by moving his armored hand like a metronome before using same hand to jab her twice in the face... Only to miss the cross when she leaned her head just barely to her left, leaving Lee over extended and, more importantly, _exposed_ from the shoulder down to a boxer armed with what amounted to over sized push daggers. By all rights, he should have been dead... But, thanks to actually having the relative time to panic thanks to his semblance, he was able to react quickly enough to hop backwards just millimeters ahead of the blade's point, duck under a round house kick that would have shamed Chuck Norris, dip sideways when she turned that into an axe kick, dive in for a tackle... And then hurriedly aborted it by firing an emergency air blast from both of his hands directly into the ground, just narrowly avoiding impaling himself on an uppercut.

 _'That,'_ He thought to himself while reaching a hand up to removed his newly broken goggles, _'Was way to close.'_ While he'd managed to avoid getting impaled, it had been a near thing, from which he hadn't escaped unscathed. The point of one of Summers katars had cut into his face, shattering the right lense of his goggles and leaving him with a rather deep cut that was more than likely going to leave a scar, beginning at the cheekbone just below the center of his right eye and curving very slightly up his face to end in his hairline, directly above the inner corner of the same eye. And with the amount of time he'd just spent processing that, he _would_ have likely ended up with even worse, but the instant after that the cavalry had arrived and once again forced Summer onto the defensive... Though she did seem to be sporting a bloody nose now.

 _'Well, at least that wasn't completely for nothing.'_ It was a decent trade, Lee figured; he may have had blood trickling into his eye, but Summer would be finding it hard to breathe through her nose, which should mess up her breath control, which would hopefully lead to her tiring out more quickly now...

Lee wiped the blood away before fixing his stance; the time for planning had come and gone. They'd done their best to manipulate circumstances into their favor, and now it was simply a matter of winning the fight. Even if it meant turning into a battle of endurance and attrition...

 _'Why do I still have a bad feeling about this?'_

* * *

 ** _Annnnnnnd my muse came back. Conveniently while I was trapped at home due to a blizzard, giving me an unexpected day off from work. Obviously, this wasn't the conclusion of this arc, but I promise that the next chapter will be! Even if it ends up needing to be double length! Also, I know today is Saturday, but from here on out, all releases will be on Sundays. As for whether or not I'll be able t do it every Sunday, that'll remain to be seen, but tentatively, the schedule is one per week. _****_^_^_**

 ** _Oh! And I added a soundtrack link to Part 5, which... is mistakenly labeled as chapter 8. Huh?_**

 ** _Okay. That's fixed now. While that still retains it's own soundtrack, I also just selected a soundtrack that fits for reading parts 5 through 8 all together; while not necessary, I recommend it._**

 ** _-CS_**


	20. Chapter 16: Escalation Part 8

_**Annnnd I'm early again. With my longest chapter to date, no less. Warning: With this chapter, I am finally forced to give this fic an M-rating, for reasons that will become readily apparent by the end. Read on at your own discretion.**_

 _ **Soundtrack:**_ ** _v=aDAL5G9Xwn4_**

* * *

 **Volume 1, Chapter 16**

 **Escalation, Part 8**

* * *

 **Summer**

 _'This has gotten out of hand.'_

When the ambush had initially been sprung (badly, thanks to Mr. Springfield's unique Aura detection capabilities), Summer hadn't been overly concerned; sure, there was a number of unknown warriors attacking them for... Some reason, and _sure_ , the fact that they (the bandits) didn't pretty much immediately lose meant that they were probably highly trained, but _surely_ the three of them together could manage to scrape their way out of this situation, right? That's what Summer had been thinking during the opening bouts, even as she searched for the group's archer... But she had been forced to revise that assessment all too quickly when a fourth and then a fifth enemy had shown up; while she couldn't quite assess the the three who were attacking Spring and Winter, the two who had decided to fight her certainly had the skill to back it up, forcing her to keep her focus entirely on the two.

If only she'd been able to disengage! While she hadn't been able to watch too much, she'd managed to catch glimpses of her allies' battles, and while she'd been a little worried about Springfield, it had seemed nearly certain that Winter would win her duel; of the five who'd attacked, Winter's opponent, the Dust user, seemed to be the least skilled of the group... And he'd managed to take a hard knock to the head almost as soon as he closed to close quarters, which both Winter and Springfield had been sure to capitalize on by consistently aiming for it. And while it had worked, eventually allowing Spring to literally give him the boot, scoring the TKO... Or so it had seemed. When Winter had gone in to make _sure_ he was knocked out, he had managed to take her by surprise and turned the tables, resulting in him knocking her out instead. Which, while certainly being a disaster on its' own, _might_ have still been recoverable if he succumbed to his head injury and went down too. Which he did. But not before bombarding Spring with a volley of Aura-propelled Stone. Combine that with the fact that he already had taken a bit of a pummeling from the martial artist and the sickle wielder (though not without dishing out an equal amount of punishment on the both of them) and things had begun to look bad. _Sure,_ he'd eventually managed to destroy one of the girl's weapons while also lopping off one of the martial artist's legs, but then one of her opponents had managed to disengage and successfully _collapse_ him as if he was simply a Jenga tower that only needed a few more blocks removed. Which had led to her having to fight an additional opponent...

Still, even with it becoming being three on one, Summer remained reasonably confident that she could pull it off; so long as she remained focused and didn't allow herself to make any mistakes, it was a certified fact that she could out last literally _anyone_ in just about any physical contest you could care to name; fatigue had no meaning to her. Literally, that is; her Semblance actually prevented her from feeling fatigue, as a side effect of having near limitless energy. So even with three separate opponents attacking her, she was confident that she could simply wait it out, presenting as perfect a defense as possible until one or more of them grew too tired to keep up with her, at which point she would strike...

But then the enemy mage had gotten back up, and, after accepting something from the darker skinned of the three women fighting her, had entered the fray in the worst possible way for Summer, joining in on an attack so well coordinated, it had to be rehearsed... Either way, it had forced Summer to actually block a hit rather than deflect, and even though she'd managed to turn it into an acrobatic maneuver... The sole of her foot still hurt. She hadn't quite noticed until then, but the man's hands and wrists were covered by a bulky yet at the same time sleek pair of gauntlets, adding significant weight to his punches. Something to keep in mind when he closed the distance once again and engaged her in a boxing match... That there had actually been Summer's best chance to eliminate one of them quickly, and indeed she had tried, going for the kill shot with every punch (though, granted, her weapons kind of made any punch potentially deadly)... Yet, somehow, the mage had managed to react at impossible speeds every single time, dodging almost before she'd even moved in many cases. Normally, Summer would assume that meant she was fighting a Faunas, and one with finely honed reflexes at that... But, considering that these reflexes only came when his goggles were glowing that blue/green color, she decided it must have something to do with his semblance. Probably something along the lines of slowed time perception... Which, while useful to note, _shouldn't_ have much effect here, so long as he couldn't actually speed himself up; after all, knowing something is coming does you no good if you can't do anything to change it. Something she noted with satisfaction when he just barely avoided impaling himself on her uppercut... But she'd felt the blade tear into something, and it had come away bloody, so even if he'd avoided death, he would likely have a new scar. Summer would feel at least a small bit of satisfaction about that...

Were it not for the bloody nose she was now sporting, courtesy of the two swift punches the man _had_ managed to land...

 _'Come to think of it, out of all of the enemy combatants, he's done the most damage out of any of them, hasn't he? Hit Winter at the beginning of this with his Stone bolts, a somewhat impressive punch into Spring's solar plexus, knocking Winter out, my bloody nose, and ravaging Spring with those Stone shards. Had they been sharper, he'd be bleeding out right now... Granted, that's still a possibility, but I need to finish this before I can even think about trying to check on him and Winter.'_

Were she fighting just any one of these four, that wouldn't have been much of a problem, seeing as, with the possible exception of the woman wielding the twin swords (who had turned out to be the archer), Summer was certain she was more skilled than any of them individually or even as a pair; her Semblance would allow her to keep going long after they had tired out, and her own skills were more than sufficient to ensure she would remain alive that long. _However._ Her Semblance only boosted the natural efficiency of her metabolism, rather than actually replacing it. And as any high school biology student could tell you, oxygen was a key component, at least in mammals... Such as Humans and Faunas. If a human can't get oxygen into their lungs, then they don't have as much oxygen for their hemoglobin to bind to, in turn meaning there was less being delivered to her body's cells via the blood stream...

In short, her bloody nose would, if she didn't get the chance to clear it, eventually lead to her energy levels being decreased to human levels, which would lead to her tiring just as quickly as her opponents. And with her no longer holding that advantage, and their combined numbers being enough to make up for her superior skill level... She needed to end this quickly, or odds were that she was going to die, and her daughters would be deprived of their mother.

 _'I'm not going to let that happen!'_

* * *

 **Lee**

 _'I knew this was gonna suck.'_ Lee thought to himself after being kicked face first into a tree, before, as much as he tried to resist, he found himself hunched over and gasping for breath. The entire time Summer had been squaring off with the four of them, Lee's eyes had never left Summer, and from what of her face he could see between her constantly having to turn in order to defend against them all, Lee could see much of her thought process; he hadn't missed the slight narrowing of her eyes whenever they settled on him or Cinder, or the widening that had occurred when she realized that she was having a little bit of trouble breathing with blood in her nose. All of them had noticed that second fact, and had capitalized by not relenting in their assault, making sure that at least one of them was keeping her hands busy at all times, which prevented her from attempting to clear the blockage and forced her to rely on breathing solely through her mouth. Something which Lee knew was less than efficient than the usual in through the nose and out through the mouth technique. Yet she _still_ managed to keep up a perfect defense against them for over... Lee chanced a brief glance down at his watch (strapped around his left fore arm, thanks to a modified band)...

 _'Half an hour? Seriously?! What is she?!'_

Granted, Summer was obviously wearing out, beginning to go from almost effortlessly avoiding all their attacks to just barely dodging in time (much the same way Lee had been avoiding her attacks for pretty much the entire fight), but Lee himself was fast approaching his last legs, and from the flashes of the other three he caught from time to time, they didn't appear to be holding up much better. And if they succumbed to exhaustion before they managed to take Summer down, Lee didn't need to imagine what kind of fate they had in store; he had caught the moment Summer's visage had changed from determination to desperation, and considering that they had likely seriously injured her companions, it wasn't hard to believe that she'd execute some or all of them if she happened to be the last person standing.

 _'All the more reason to make sure we win, then.'_

With a determined scowl, Lee pushed himself off of the tree, now breathing in a somewhat natural rhythm again, and resumed a combat stance; Cinder, Neo, and Emerald all seemed to be in the fight still, but his brief break seemed to have cost them some of the initiative, allowing Summer to retaliate every so often rather than just _somehow_ successfully avoid getting hit by all four of them.

 _'Right, time to put the pressure back on.'_

And reapply the pressure he did; when Summer drew her arm back to thrust one of her katars into a stunned Emerald (who had been dazed when, after attempting to catch one of Summer's arms, had quickly been reminded that the older woman was still more than capable of inflicting pain from such a lock, in this case via a rather _brutal_ scorpion kick), Lee fired off a small stone of Earth Dust, which hit the back of Summer's elbow and thus prevented the blow, as well as, to his pleasant surprise, forcing Summer to drop the weapon when her hand reflexively jerked; he hadn't quite been aiming for it, but he'd managed to score a direct hit on her ulnar nerve, colloquially known as the funny bone. Cinder and Neo, quick to take advantage of this, closed the short distance separating them from Summer and attacked from opposite sides, forcing Summer, now holding only one weapon, to dodge back and to the side, away from Emerald, thus leaving behind her dropped weapon... But sending her directly towards a waiting Lee, who was crouched with one fist drawn back and covered in flames.

Time seemed to slow down as Lee and Summer made eye contact, the latter's eyes widening in panic as they recognized the attack that had forced even the massive Springfield to be lifted into the air and pushed backwards a few feet.

 _"Falcooooon,"_

Summer, still airborne, attempted to raise her single remaining katar into a position that would cause Lee to impale his fist on it...

 _"Punch!"_

But she was too slow, Lee's fist slipping just past the deadly point as well as her other still-rising arm as he shot forwards, driving his limb into Summer's ribs with an audible crack before his built up momentum caused her to shoot away from him at a downwards angle. Summer hit the ground hard, and her momentum forced her to bounce and roll like a rag doll for several meters before she finally crashed into a mighty oak tree, where, utterly defeated, she was forced to lay, battered, bruised, and barely holding on to consciousness.

Lee didn't think she was getting back up from that one. Nobody else did either, and, after warily watching her for a few moments, they all let their guard down, and greedily sucked in air as they regrouped.

"That..." Lee panted, "Was intense... To say the least..."

"That is... An appropriate description."

After a couple minutes of just catching their breath, all four of them who remained standing looked over to Summer Rose.

"What are we going to do about her?" Emerald asked.

"What do you mean? I thought we decided this before hand; we lop off an arm and damage one of her lungs, and boom, there goes her Hunting career. Can't fight if you can't even go for a jog without nearly killing yourself."

"That, Sky, was before we realized just how dangerous she is."

"Which she _won't_ be if we cripple her. We talked about this before, that was the whole _point_ of this amb- **augh!** "

Lee turned his hurt gaze onto Cinder, and raised a hand to cradle his ribs, which Cinder had given a solid whack with the flat of one of her swords. Cinder herself was glaring at Lee rather coldly.

"Do _not_ forget your place, Sky."

Lee sighed. "Of course not, Ma'am. I apologize."

"Good. Now, to answer your question, Gem, we're go-"

"Look out!"

With his eyes glowing, Lee turned... And widened them in panic when he saw what Mercury had warned them about.

 _ **Blam! Blam! Blam blam blam! Blam! Blam blam! Blam! Blam blam blam!**_

The first bullet lodged itself into Lee's shoulder, causing him to spin as the force knocked him off of his feet. While he was in the air, he could see Emerald, slightly quicker to react, get hit in the leg as she attempted to roll sideways out of the way, causing her to go down with a cry. Neo, quick enough to raise her umbrella, managed to block three shots aimed at her face and torso... But then fell as a bullet passed just beneath the edge of the canopy and hit her just above the knee, causing her to collapse onto that leg. And Cinder found herself disarmed after dodging three bullets, when the last two impacted the handles of her weapons, knocking them out of her hands.

 _'Shitshitshitshitshitshe'sstillnotfinishedgottagetupandhelpCinder!'_

With a groan, Lee forced himself to get up... Just in time to watch Cinder end up on the receiving end of a brutal kick combo, in which Summer's leg swung like a pendulum, quite literally attacking from just about every possible direction and angle (including some that Lee would say _shouldn't_ have been) before a savage front kick sent Cinder flying backwards.

Lee gulped as Summer approached him, seemingly ignoring the fact that her ribs were broken and piercing through the skin on her right side.

 _'OhgodohgodohgodIdon'twannadienotyetshitshitshit **GETBACK**!'_

* * *

 **Cinder**

 ** _A few minutes later_**

Finally, it was over. They were bloody, bruised, and in Mercury's case, even mangled, but _finally,_ they had won.

 _"That... Was not fun. If just one top tier Huntress is this dangerous, I'll need to start gathering more information on them before planning a mission like this again."_

Cinder turned her head to look at Caerulean, then to the long gash on her arm. She was going to have to punish him, something which he had no doubt already realized, if the face he was making was any indication; while he _had_ done well, and had been one of the main reasons they'd finally managed to achieve victory, he had also been the one responsible for causing them all to divert their attention away from the downed Summer Rose in a misguided attempt to spare her life, allowing her the precious moments she had needed to reload her weapon and catch them all by surprise. And she had not let that go to waste, managing to put a bullet in each of them save Cinder herself, who had gotten off lucky with an additional set of bruises and a gash on her arm where Summer had nearly succeeded in lopping it off. She _had_ succeeded in leaving Cinder dazed after kicking her away, which should have resulted in all of them getting killed...

But Caerulean had gotten back onto his feet, and with him in front and a massive oak tree to her rear, Summer was going to have to go through him in order to escape.

 _Fucking... Not right now. Focus, Cinder._ Surprising as it had been that Caerulean's and Summer's Auras had resonated, it changed nothing; she needed to find that damned Maiden fast, _before_ she moved forward with her other plan. Besides, Caerulean was smart enough to realize he was in far too deep by this point; from what Cinder had seen, he had panicked, leading him, and more importantly, his _Aura,_ into a knee-jerk reaction... Almost like an automatic trap trigger, when an enemy gets too close. And the results, as they could all see, would have been horrifying, were it not for the fact that they were already cold blooded killers.

A couple of feet up the oaks trunk, was Summer Rose. Her arms, legs, and shoulders all skewered by spikes of earth and ice, holding her in place. Around her neck, a U-shaped stake preventing her head from lolling forward. The culprit on his knees as he gazed up at her in shock.

Cinder smiled cruelly, despite her anger. _'Oh what I could do with you, dear pet. Despite being an observational savant with that semblance of yours, you still fall apart so easily, and can't quite control your strength. I'll definitely be using that to my advantage.'_

Satisfied that their objective was complete, Cinder turned to the rest of the group. "Time to go."

* * *

 **Start Sountrack here!**

* * *

 **Summer**

Pain...

For the last several moments, that was all she knew, with the occasional muffled flash of conversation between her murderers.

 _"Just... moment... know... just... catch up... yes m... understood."_

She was starting to get dizzy from the blood loss. Fortunately, however, it was also numbing the pain in her body enough to open her eyes, allowing her to see, albeit blurry and dark around the edges. She might have been dying, and unable to move, but she couldn't help but let out weak chuckles; she knew what was happening. The boy was in trouble, and if the interaction that had bought her enough time for a last stand had been any indication, he was likely to be punished quite severely later for it. Despite it being short and not quite effective enough, she didn't... _Couldn't_ bring herself to regret her end. No; she'd fought to her fullest, and way past her limit. They had too. For that, she respected them, despite being enemies.

Well, perhaps the one who'd actually killed her wasn't. She had heard stories before, that she hadn't believed at the time, mind; after all, there were literally _no_ recorded incidents, _all_ of them being passed down through word of mouth, and it was said it wasn't even _possible_ unless the two involved shared blood somewhere down the line. Stories about some Auras reacting to others in different ways. In this case, their Auras had actually merged for a brief moment... And during that moment, she had seen flashes of his life. A few memories, key experiences in shaping him into the person he was now. In that moment, Summer had _been_ him, and while a lot of what she'd seen had confused her, what she had understood let her understand why the man who had put her in such a pathetic state and was openly distraught over having done so, would serve such an obviously cruel woman.

 _'I still don't think that should have been possible... But I'm going to have to let him worry about that.'_ She thought as he waved his arm. The next thing she knew, she had fallen forward into his arms, held close, and... Shaking?

Straining, she tilted her head to look up at his eyes... _'Oh **H** **ell** no!'_

His eyes shot open wide when she spoke, her once beautiful voice now raspy and full of gravel escaping from her lips, now cracked and nearly white like porcelain. "Hey... Down..." Her eyes narrow...

He obeyed, gently propping her against the tree. For a moment, he stared at her, his eyes betraying all the emotion he was feeling... Silently, he was weeping, the tears leaving his oddly colored eyes red and puffy.

 _'Of all the people who could have ended me, I get the damned newbie?'_

"Don't cry, kid. We fought one helluva, quite frankly, _epic_ battle, and you're ruining it by _fucking crying."_ She sounded as annoyed as a dying warrior woman possibly could. Which, naturally, meant as condescending as possible, even as she laughed inwardly.

She wasn't surprised when he asked, with his heart on his sleeve, "Do you hate me? I've never... Not to an innocent... And you were so kind back in the village... This wasn't supposed to happen! I'm so sorry!"

With that, she found just enough strength in her arm to slap him. _Hard._ Leaving him clearly shocked.

Summer sighed. _'Might as well give the kid one last lesson.'_

"Listen up, _boy._ True warriors _never_ ask... That." Summer was forced to pause as she violently hacked up blood from her punctured lung, leaving it plastered down her front. "Whether you're a good person... Or not... Is irrelevant. Fate... dictated we were op... opposed, so we were enemies." Her face contorted in pain as her lungs burned, both the one that had been punctured and the one working over time to attempt to supply her with enough oxygen.

 _'C'mon, Aura, just keep me alive long enough to finish. That's all I ask.'_ The pain receded instantly, apparently heeding her wish.

"That said... You and I both still had a choice. A choice whether or not to be... Or not to be... Here. In this place, today." Another coughing fit, and a seizure racking her body. After a few seconds, she continued.

"But _neither_ of... us, have the right to judge the others' choices. You don't know me, beyond whatever... whatever _that_ was showed you, and I sure as _Hell_ don't know _you._ I can't hate you; it's not me." Summer said, smirking like she had just won an argument. At confessing that, the tears behind her eyes finally began to spill out, the fact that she wouldn't get to say goodbye to her love or her daughters finally hitting her. But she had faith that this wouldn't break them; no, if anything, it would only make them stronger, once they managed to move on.

Then. She saw their faces in this poor child's, hugging her as if his life depended on it. She lifted her soft and bloody hand to his wet cheek, caressing it tenderly. Despite the different palate, his face looked and felt _so much_ like her youngest...

Which prompted her Aura, to prompt her, to say:

"Do not hate yourself for what has transpired, you dear, sweet boy. For we all know this is the best possible outcome for the future. In this world... good and evil are interchangeable and often come from one another. No one in a position of... power... is innocent. I'm not; I have performed my fair share of morally gray actions, made some ambiguous choices... Everyone does. Reprehensible things in the pursuit of what we believe to be the greater good. Maybe you're right. Maybe we're both wr-wrong."

Her arm immediately dropped to her side, her strength beginning to fail her.

 _" **However. Never apologize for the path you choose.**_ I fucking swear, _I_ _will_ _haunt you_ if you do." Summer finished strong, her voice hard as steel, leaving no room for discussion. By this time, her eyes were out of tears, but still damp... As were his.

"Yes... Yes ma'am." He replied, confidence seeping back into his voice.

"What's your name, kid... No, warrior?"

To his credit, he hid his surprise well. "Sk-... Caerulean." He answered, after a brief hesitation.

"Cerulean... What a _sunny_ name." They stopped and looked at each other when they realized what she just did. And they laughed together. Until she started to groan.

 _'Oh my god, Yang would would be so proud of me right now; that pun was bad.'_

"Going out on a high note, always a plus. Good." She said, coughing. Looking straight into his eyes. "Now finish me off."

His eyes scrunched into a grimace. "I... Don't think I can..."

She gave him a deadpan look. "What did we _just_ talk about?"

"Standing by our decisions?"

"Correct. And, for better or worse, you chose to be here, to do this. Now take the envelope from my cloak's pocket, and my weapons, I hereby bequeath to you, Cerulean, the foe who bested me. And, finally, take responsibility for the path you choose to walk, and I'll die knowing that the man who killed me is a true warrior."

For a few seconds, she feared he would continue to refuse, as she watched various emotions flit their way onto his features, but finally they settled on acceptance.

"Und... Understood."

"Never... forget who you are, Cerulean. You have a good heart; don't you... dare throw that... away, ev...er..." She said in a voice that was gradually growing weaker, even as he used the very last of his Dust to form a small spike of Earth and Ice over her breast.

"I won't... Goodbye, Summer..." And with a resolved sadness, he used his own two hands to plung it into her Aura-covered heart, the only thing that was keeping her alive.

"Thank... You..."

 _'Good... Bye... My chil... dren...'_ Gasping and smiling into Caerulean's eyes until she couldn't see anymore, smiling all the while. She had lived how she had always dreamed, and died in a way that she could accept. Which is why she felt that she could go out with a smile. Thus, as she slipped away, she welcomed Death with a warm and loving embrace...

And wished Lee the best.

* * *

 _Summer Rose... She deserved so much better, better than to be killed as a pawn in a shadow war, solely as a message to someone who is only marginally aware that the other side even exists. And certainly not as a fucking accident, the result of some FNG losing control of his Aura in a moment of panic... But, all things considered, it was probably the best way she could have gone in that situation... Both for me and for her. Knowing Cinder, she would have ordered me to deliver the death blow for the offense of arguing against killing Summer, and I would have done something stupid, like reminding Cinder that the first day we even met that I wasn't going to be her trigger man unless absolutely necessary. And dangerous as Summer had proven to be, I was not convinced she needed to killed. I would have refused, and Cinder would have killed her anyway... And she would have dragged it out, just to make a fucking point. And I know this; why else would she have been content to leave Summer crucified to an oak, with blood leaking in to her lungs from her broken ribs? I may not have wanted to kill her... But at that point, her death was a foregone conclusion, and nothing I did or said was going to change that. But I could give her a clean death... And with how emotionally wracking it ended up being, I understand why Cinder allowed me to do so; after all, what better way to turn somebody's blood cold, than to force them to watch as the life leaves their victim's eyes? It was as painful as Cinder surely envisioned..._

 _But she didn't count on me having the conversation we did. Cinder, as calculating and intelligent as she is, is completely incapable of understanding the concepts of honor and love, beyond the hypothetical, so I can see how she would have counted on Summer hating me for killing her, and that affirmation of hate becoming the straw that broke the camel's back. Had that happened, it would have broken me, allowing her to strip away my humanity and rebuild me into something she could better use, a... Pet. But instead, I found myself being comforted by the dying woman, and while the message she conveyed did allow me to harden my resolve... It didn't freeze over my heart. In my life time, both of them, in fact, I've broken many promises for the sake of reaching my goals, but a promise between warriors and a promise made to the dying are two of the three types that I absolutely refuse to break, consequences be damned, and the promise I made to Summer in her final moments counted as both. I may regret the consequences of many of my actions, and seek to repent, but never shall I actually apologize, for they were, in my situation, what I thought was for the best... It was clear to me by then that I was involved in something far worse than I had originally thought, but by the end of that conversation I was a different man. For while one warrior had just died, her legacy would live on, both in her two children..._

 _And in the warrior her death had birthed._

* * *

 _ **Special thanks to Lucifer Daemon, for help with Summer's and Cinder's POVs there towards the end; had he not said anything (or written the original drafts of those sections) it would likely have been entirely from Lee's perspective, and not have been nearly as emotional as it turned out to be. So, again, thank you!**_

 _ **Now that that's out of the way... Holy shtako, that got intense. I swear, these are manly tears of sorrow! Summer crucified and then mercy killed, Lee getting emotional, and everyone but Cinder notably wounded... I think it's safe to say that was Lee's Cynicism Catalyst.**_

 _ **Anyway, thank you for sticking with this story this far! If you liked it, didn't like it, have thoughts on where it should go, etc., please don't forget to leave a review to let me know about it! Until next time,**_

 _ **Cerulean Sorbeltz**_

 _ **Update: I may have underestimated just how challenging my new schedule will be. Between changing both the days I work and the hours (2nd shift Tuesday-Saturday to 3rd shift Sunday-Thursday), as well as adding in just one college course (English Composition 101), I don't have anywhere close to as much time as I'd hoped to work on this. And it'll only get worse once summer hits since I plan on taking 2 classes then... But worry not! While this is going to have to become a secondary priority, I am by no means taking a break; in fact, I actually have about four or five thousand words written since releasing this chapter last week; however, that's divided up into three separate chapters: an interlude, an epilogue/prologue to the sequel (not that I'm anywhere near the end of this one yet), and the next actual chapter. At the moment, the plan is to release the interlude first, then the next chapter after I finish it; I probably have another two-three arcs before we reach the epilogue, so I'll try to put that on the back burner for now. But, with that out of the way, let's move on to why I'm adding this update:**_

 _ **I'm officially changing my release schedule from every Sunday, to every other Saturday, and I'm sticking to it. While there will be the potential for early releases if I ever manage to get more than a couple of chapters ahead... But, no promises on that front. Like I said, I've got school and a new work schedule going on too, so I don't quite have as much time to focus on this as I used to. But I'm not giving up on this, or even truly taking a break; I just need to slow down a bit. Didn't want to worry you all ^_^**_

 ** _Until next week (hopefully!),_**

 ** _-CS_**


	21. Interludes 1 & 2: Shroud & Glimmer

_**Before I start, I'd just like to thank you all for the astounding amount of good will this story has received over the last couple of weeks. As a fiction writer, quality entertainment mixed with believable story telling is my goal, and it warms my heart immensely to see that I've achieved that. And while I'm not quite sure I'd agree with those of you who have basically stated this story is underrated (after all, I did choose not to star any of the main cast), I am flattered that so many of you apparently think so. And shall continue to do my best to maintain that standard of quality. I was originally going to hold onto this until Saturday, but I think I've reached the point where further edits will only hinder, not help. Plus, it doubles as a more practical thanks for all the support. So, here ya go!**_

* * *

 **Interlude 1**

 **Shroud**

* * *

 **M: ? D: ?**

Huntsmen... Huntresses... Slayers of Grimm and defenders of mankind. Elite fighters with superpowers and super skills, that is what they are meant to be. And, for the most part, it was an accurate portrayal. Sure, the tales of their endeavors tend to be embellished, becoming even more grandiose and flamboyant with each retelling... But, predilection for the dramatic aside, the public's view of Huntsmen remained largely correct. What most would fail to realize, however, is that they are _not_ invincible... And quite far from invulnerable, as well. It was, to the Schnee Heiress's shame, a lesson that she had just been reminded of in the worst possible way.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Schnee, but I regret to inform you that as of last night, Mr. Springfield passed away, despite our best efforts. There were complications, you see..."

Winter tuned the doctor out; she may have been unconscious when Spring had been wounded, but she had still been the first to see his wounds, having administered basic first aid once she'd woken up and found no sign of their attackers. She had done her best to stabilize him, using strips cut off of her own clothing in order to bandage the wounds in his thigh and torso... But he'd been lying in the dirt for too long, and the wounds had become infected. Combined with the fact he had been losing blood for at least half an hour before she'd woken up, and the military had taken half again as long to retrieve them after that... It was a tragedy, but Winter was not surprised. Yet, in spite of this, she could not muster up the energy to grieve, instead retreating even deeper into her thoughts as she replayed the events of yesterday.

Despite her best efforts, and those of her partner, the three bandits they had been fighting had still managed to knock her out... Or, rather, that _one_ in particular had, the one who had been using Dust Magic. She and Spring had managed to daze him, bringing him to the ground where he seemed to barely be holding onto consciousness, only for him to turn the tables on her when she attempted to get him the rest of the way there. She herself had been dazed when, after catching her foot, he'd swept her other leg from beneath her and caused her to hit her head on a tree root. She remembered rolling onto her front, where she'd groggily pushed herself onto her hands and knees... Only to receive the same treatment she'd attempted to dish out, a hard kick to the temple knocking her out instantly. She'd remained unconscious for the rest of the fight... But when she woke up, she quickly discovered that she was the only one both alive and conscious. She'd almost instantly spotted Spring, and rendered what first aid she could, but the third member of her squad...

Winter had lost the contents of her stomach when she'd finally found her. Carried several dozen meters away by what had looked to be a fierce battle, Winter had held no doubt as to what ended it when she found Summers bloody, immobile form slumped against a large oak tree. Her hooded cloak, once white, now solid red and soaking from all the blood that had soaked into it. Blood that had drained out of her body via the holes which pierced all the way through her arms, legs, and hands where she had been crucified to the tree. _Crucified!_ Winter was by no means sheltered from violence, having seen a Huntsman or two succumb to the Grimm during her time as a Huntress... But at least the Grimm were fairly straightforward about killing you, their mindlessness preventing them from being able to truly be _cruel._ This, however... This had gone beyond that.

Or so it would have seemed, had she found Summer in a crumpled heap, fallen when the stakes they'd used had been no longer able to support her. But after taking a moment to think rationally, she'd realized that despite the gruesomeness of her wounds, Summer was propped up against the tree, and looked... Peaceful. A smile on her face, and her eyes closed. And, perhaps most telling, was the hole in her chest; you don't stab someone in the heart if you're looking to make them suffer. At that point, it would have been a mercy killing...

Winter felt herself beginning to shake; there was nothing _merciful_ about what they had done to Summer, to Spring...

To her.

The dam broke, and the tears began to flow freely down her face. Why did _she_ survive, when neither of her companions had? Summer, arguably the most amazing fighter alive, and so wise to boot... Spring, with his incredible physical endurance and his capacity to sense out any man made ambush... How was it that _she_ was spared when they weren't?

 _'It should have been me. Why wasn't it me?!'_

 _'Because you are weak. Not worth the time or effort it would have taken to finish you off...'_

 _'I am not weak!'_

 _'Compared to the average civilian, perhaps not, but you were defeated with a total of, what, five hits?'_

 _'Those were all solid blows!'_

 _'That landed because you lack skill, forced to use your semblance as a crutch because you could not otherwise stand against an opponent with any measure of actual talent.'_

 _'That's... not true..?'_

 _'Take the man who defeated you, for instance. While talented with Dust manipulation, his close quarters combat left much to be desired, yes?'_

 _'He was amateurish at best.'_

 _'And yet, his reflexes were quick enough, his skill just enough to disarm you, somewhat literally, before he then proceeded to wipe the floor with you.'_

 _'He did not wipe the floor with me!'_

 _'He would have, had your partner not intervened.'_

 _'That is pure speculation, with no factual bas-'_

 _'You were defeated by an enemy who was barely conscious himself. And who was, to borrow your own words, "amateurish at best." You are weak, Winter. Childish. Talentless. Unfitting of the Schnee Mantle.'_

 **"SHUT. UP!"**

.

..

...

"Ms. Schnee?"

Winter blinked, bringing the world back into focus. Her eyes, set into a glare, settled on her fist, which had slammed against the wall, leaving a small indentation.

 _'Any true Huntsmen would have left an actual hole, you know, assuming they didn't bring down the whole wall. Weakling.'_

A twitch of the eye was the only indication she gave, forcing herself to ignore the voice; she knew that she had been the least skilled of that group, relying heavily on her semblance and natural speed. Great for taking down single opponents quickly, but not as good against multiple opponents. Or, apparently, one who could react quickly enough to her speed that it wasn't much of an advantage anymore.

 _'Now she gets it.'_

Twitch.

"Are you alright, Ms. Schnee?"

Winter took an audible breath, forcing herself to calm down. Restoring her signature icy demeanor as she removed her fist from the wall.

"My apologies, Doctor, I was just a little beside myself."

"Perfectly understandable, Ms. Schnee. Survivor's guilt is a common occurrence in cases such as yours, and while I'm not qualified to diagnose it, I am familiar enough to recognize the symptoms. I can't make you, but I would highly recommend that you speak to a psychiatrist at some point in the near future."

"Don't you mean a psychologist? You just want me to go to counselling, correct?"

"No, I do mean a psychiatrist. While I doubt it'll be the cause, you _do_ have a concussion, so it's better we be safe than sorry, make _sure_ that it's completely a mental condition rather than a physical one."

"I see... Is there anything else, or may I go now? I wish to be alone."

"You can go, Ms. Schnee. For what it's worth, I do apologize for your loss."

A sad smile came upon her as she stood to leave.

"Thank you, Doctor. Farewell."

As Winter left the outpost's infirmary, she could not help but frown to herself.

 _'How did we lose? I realize we were outnumbered, and that I made a mistake, but with the way the enemy mage dropped, he couldn't possibly have stayed conscious much longer than I did. Even outnumbered two to one, I highly doubt Spring and Summer would have lost without at least taking one or two of our opponents with them. Yet, there were no bodies. Which... doesn't say much, as they could have simply taken their dead and wounded with them... But all the blood I saw seemed to be either Spring's or Summer's... The pools I found them in. All smaller patches would have been washed away by the rain... Meaning that whatever injuries our opponents took, they couldn't have bled much... which means they probably all survived. Fuck.'_

 _'Well, that won't do.'_

 _'No... It won't.'_

 _'So what are you going to do about it, Winter dearest?'_

 _'I'm going to train. I will become stronger. I will become better. I will... Have my revenge.'_

 _'That's my girl...'_

* * *

 **Interlude 2:**

 **Glimmer**

 **(Original Draft written by Lucifer Daemon)**

* * *

 **M: ? D: ?**

Ozpin was sitting in his office, a heavy weight upon his chest as he looked over one of the latest reports, detailing the ambush of one of the top Hunting teams... And the demises of both Ronald Springfield and Summer Rose. Needless to say, the people who knew were somewhat panicked, and Summer's family were... Well. Taking it very hard, to say the least.

He couldn't help but smile at the end, however, when he saw what she had written in the dirt beside her. Miraculously unnoticed by her assailants.

"And why, exactly, are you smiling at Winter's report? You are aware of the gravity of the situation?" His deputy asked, giving him a suspicious and disapproving look.

"See for yourself, Glynda; the paragraph at the end." Ozpin replied in amusement as he passed her the file. A moment passed as she read... Then her brows furrowed. "Oh, it gets better." She ignored him completely.

"'The deceased's property, (particularly, her weapons),' which, she, supposedly, would never part with, 'were not found anywhere in the vicinity of the battlefield?'" She recited aloud, then looked up at him. "Oz, what is the meaning of this?"

Ozpin kept his smile as he shook his head and sighed. "You know, when I first met her, she seemed to be hopelessly optimistic and blessed with a surplus of energy to run around with... Even more so than even her Semblance should have been able to provide." Ozpin chuckled at the memory. "Only later would would I realize just how...Eccentric, she was."

Beyond arching a brow, Glynda chose not to call the pot out for calling the kettle black, instead settling to ask in a neutral tone: "What do you mean?"

Ozpin motioned for her to sit down. "She... Well, her _ideals_ , really, were a bit archaic, even by the standards of someone of my advanced years."

Again, Glynda resisted the urge to scoff; Ozpin wasn't exactly young, but he wasn't quite _old_ either. Still, his statement was... Frustratingly cryptic, so her visage unknowingly twisted itself into a confused frown.

Ozpin elaborated. "As I understand it, she had a short list of, what she called, self rules. Very specific rules she would enforce on herself, in order to better herself."

Glynda arched a brow. "I haven't heard of anyone doing that since The War."

"Indeed, she was the only one in her time to do so, much to the chagrin of her teammates and, later, her husband."

"While admittedly eccentric, I fail to see the issue-"

"The punishment for breaking one was quite severe, naturally."

"I take it she broke one, then?"

Ozpin frowned. "Only once, and never again after that. She succumbed to her anger and acted upon it, thus breaking the most important rule she'd ever set for herself. As penance, she flogged herself... severely."

Glynda blanched. "So why, specifically, were you smiling?"

"Because of what she wrote just before she died," He said as he walked over to the window, where he looked down on the courtyard, taking a sip from his ever-present mug of coffee before using the window's reflective properties to look Glynda in the eye. "Peace... Worthy... Cerulean. Wander Not Lost."

An annoyed stare met him. "Obviously, I have no idea what that means."

"Peace; it means she was satisfied with the way things turned out, and that she had no regrets... Worthy; she acknowledged her assailant in some way as her equal... Cerulean; they traded names before the final blow was struck. Wander Not Lost, all one sentence; I suspect that is shorthand for "Not all those who wander are lost." Which is a line from an ancient poem... Tolkien, was it? I take it you know the piece, Glynda?"

"Yes... I believe it goes:

 _All that is gold does not glitter,_

 _Not all those who wander are lost;_

 _The old that is strong does not wither,_

 _Deep roots are not reached by the frost._

 _From the ashes a fire shall be woken,_

 _A light from the shadows shall spring;_

 _Renewed shall be blade that was broken,_

 _The crownless again shall be king._

"In the tale this poem appears in, this is referring to the last of a long bloodline of kings, near forgotten, in fact, to the point where he actually lives his life up until the story begins as a Ranger... Or, put into terms relevant to our world, a Hunter. But these Rangers were not well trusted by those they fought to defend, oft viewed as vagabonds. The third and fourth lines reinforce his royal lineage, alluding to the fact that he had a longer lifespan than those around him, and thus appeared to be much younger than he actually was. The fifth and sixth reference that he represents hope in a time of darkness, while the seventh and eighth are referring to his blade, an indisputable proof of his bloodline, and that he will reclaim his birthright... After defeating a Dark Lord, of course. If we replace the sword... And king..."

Glynda trailed off in shock, incredulity taking over her visage. "Oz, you don't mean to say..."

"I highly doubt that, Glynda. While you and I very much love our fairy tales, you know that Summer herself wasn't all that fond of them, despite the show she would put on for her daughters. But she did like poetry, and while the context of the setting makes for a fantastical theory, the context in which she quoted it, and specifically, _which_ line she chose to quote, leads me to believe she was being a little more literal; that this assassin, this... _Cerulean_. May just be somebody who is capable of being redeemed, should the opportunity present itself."

Glynda finally allowed the sarcasm to escape in the form of a scoff. "Yeah, right. Next you'll be telling me that Qrow is capable of not drinking for longer than a couple of hours."

Ozpin merely chuckled. "Well, he does have to sleep some times."

Glynda groaned. "Oz..."

"I'm not saying that such a feat would be easy, or even that this person would be willing to try. But I think that, if he managed to earn such respect from _Summer_ of all people, especially on her death bed? Then on some level he probably deserves the chance to be given him. Whether or not he _takes_ that chance, of course, would remain his own responsibility."

Sigh. "Whatever you say, Oz..."

* * *

 ** _The poem Glynda quotes is "All that is gold does not glitter," written by J.R.R. Tolkien for Lord of The Rings. Which I do not own._**

 ** _As for how exactly Springfield died (just in case any of you were wondering), Neo nicked his femoral artery when she stabbed him in the thigh; the doctor mentioned that while Winter was spacing out. Not immediately lethal, but fatal if left untreated long enough. Winter did her best after she woke up, but while the dirt that got in both that wound and the one in his side both prolonged his life by clotting the wound, it also caused complications due to infection that simply weren't treated in time to save him. RIP._**

 ** _Special Thanks once again to Lucifer Daemon for the Light from Shadow interlude; I -heavily- modified it, but the idea for Summer's honor code came from Luci, as did the whole message left in the dirt (minus the Tolkien bits). If any of you ever feel like writing a short scene for this story, feel free. If I feel like it can work with something I have planned, I'm more than happy to include it after some editing. And even if I don't use it, I'll critique it for you; I like to help others grow, plus it certainly helps inspire me to keep writing. And as you can see, if I do use it, I credit the original author. All I ask, in the event any of you do, is that A: Wait until it's clear where the arc is going. Y'all knew Summer wasn't going to win as soon as Lee got back up during part 6, B: The scene remains short. I won't be strict on word count, but I want a scene, not a whole chapter. That's my job. And C: it not be from Lee's perspective. Anybody else is fair game until I state otherwise._**

 ** _With that out of the way, time to rant... AHHHHHHH! So much shtak hit so many fans, I don't even know where to begin! Great that Ruby didn't all of a sudden take a level in badass and destroy Neo... But I swear, if Neo doesn't somehow survive that I'm going to be livid. She can't go full Mary Poppins with her umbrella and then die by falling. Though I did love the irony of Roman's death... Though, I suppose we can't be 100% sure he actually died, since the Griffon swallowed him whole and Ruby didn't cut it in half. He probably died in the explosion afterwards... But I suppose we won't know for sure until someone confirms it. Then there was Velvet's weapon... Which was simultaneously badass yet at the same time a bit of a let down. Props for the concept/idea... But I feel like the implementation could have been executed better; seriously, no using Sun's abs as a weapon?! C'mon, man! Grate some Grimm up on those! xD_**

 ** _Jaune, Jaune, Jaune... YOU HAD ONE JOB! Granted, it was understandable that he would turn around when Pyrrha started to scream... *sigh* Which brings me to my next point. Nobody else wants to believe it, but to -me-, it seemed like Pyrrha was being sacrificed in order to revive Amber. Pyyrha was screaming, Amber was waking up, Ozpin saying "I'm sorry?" Everyone else points to the fact that the lights on the cables seemed to be flowing from Amber to Pyrrha when they try to tell me I'm wrong... But how do you explain the actual, physical evidence occurring during the transfer? Sure, Ozpin and Co. told Pyrrha they were gonna make her the Maiden, and that might have even actually been the plan. But with everything going to shtak so suddenly, wouldn't you do what Ozpin did? Very much a shtako choice to have to make, but probably the right one in that situation: An experienced Huntress who is also a fully realized Maiden, and thus capable of fully utilizing her powers without needing a learning period, or a novice, even if said novice is Pyrrha freakin' Nikos. So, for that reason alone, I'm actually kind of glad Cinder managed to finally get the power, since Arkos remains my (canon) OTP. I'm pretty sure you've all figured out who I'm -actually- shipping in -this- story by this point, but on the off chance you haven't, I won't ruin it for you quite yet ^_^_**

 ** _And finally... Yandere Adam? Seriously? While I can definitely see it, it sort of felt like it was a bit much. Definitely creepy... Which I suppose was probably the point. All I have to say is that HE MUST DIE! Poor Yang... She better come back next volume with a robot arm. All I have to say about that._**

 ** _Okay, I'm done ranting now. Haha. Anyway, now that I'm not trying to write three different chapters -and- an English paper at once, I should be able to stick to my release schedule... Which is going to remain every other Saturday, because, like I said, I'm taking an English Composition class at the same time, and it is very time consuming. But the important thing is that the next chapter should be on time (meaning Saturday the 27th of February)._**

 ** _-Until next time,_**

 ** _CaeruleanSorbeltz_**

 ** _PS: Due to a rapid series of real life events (read: a very sudden, pressing situation at work and an unreasonably large amount of homework the week I intended to update this), the next chapter is being pushed back by a week. I'll let you all know what's going on when I release the next chapter, but for now, rest assured that I'm still working on this._**


	22. Chapter 17: La Vida Loca, Part 1

**Volume 1, Chapter 17**

 **La Vida Loca**

 **Part 1**

* * *

 _After that mission, we were forced to lie low for a while; after all, there isn't much mercenary work capable of being done when three members of your squad are recovering from serious injuries. Emerald, Neo, and I had all been shot towards the end of the fight with Summer, and while I got off relatively lucky with the bullet merely lodging itself in my shoulder, Emerald and Neo had both been shot in the leg. Fortunately for Emerald, her chaps had halted much of the bullet's momentum, both giving me ample reason to stop making fun of her fashion sense, while also relegating what should have been a serious injury into merely being a flesh wound; she was actually able to pluck the bullet out of her leg and wrap a bandage around it before we left. Neo, however... Well, Neo's wound was a little more serious. One must remember that, without her boots, she's only fifty-one inches tall, and built like a pixie. While this makes her a smaller and thus more difficult target to hit, this also means that anything that does successfully hit her is going to be able to do a lot more damage than it would to somebody of larger stature. Getting shot in the thigh with a 9mm round would obviously suck for anyone, but it was even worse for Neo, who would take as much damage from that as someone of my size would from a magnum round... If only it had actually been a 9mm round she'd been shot with. Summer Rose was not one to mess around; if she shot a Grimm, she wanted it to die, not laugh as the round merely stuck in its flesh. So rather than use the 9mm rounds I would have initially thought made more sense (after all, you can carry quite a few of those without becoming weighed down), her weapons were chambered for one of the largest possible cartridges you could logically put in a semi automatic handgun; measuring in at 12.7x40mm, Neo had taken a fifty-caliber round just above the knee. And while the wound hadn't been so serious that she would be forced to quit her mercenary career and become a town guard, the bullet had managed to fully penetrate her leg and crack her femur. We managed to extract the bullet once we returned to camp... But with how large the bullet had been, and how tiny Neo herself happened to be, it would be a while before her Aura managed to fully heal the damages, effectively keeping her off of her feet for the foreseeable future._

 _In light of all that, I could understand why Cinder was furious with me, for I was rather angry with myself as well. While I still disagreed with the assessment that Summer needed to be killed, it was inexcusable that I'd allowed her the opportunity to nearly kill the rest of us; it was entirely my fault that Neo was injured, and while she herself didn't hold it against me, I was determined that I would no longer be the weak link. I would retain my conscience... But I would restrain it, where necessary, in order to prevent such a disaster from ever occurring again. In the meantime, however, the matter remained that I had chupped up rather badly, and as my boss, Cinder had to address that in the form of disciplinary action. And while I did get off extremely lightly, for reasons that will make themselves apparent later in my tale, at the time, I almost wished that she had resorted to some sort of physical punishment, such as a beating, or even a torture session. Not because I'm a masochist, despite all logic pointing otherwise... But because the actual punishment ended up being much, much worse:_

 _I had to be Neo's caretaker._

* * *

 **M: +6 D: +0**

"I can't believe I'm actually doing this..."

This, in this case, referring to the costume Lee was currently wearing. Which honestly wouldn't have been so bad if it was realistic representation; his mother had worked in a hospital, and, while not a nurse herself, had often told him how dedicated they tended to be towards their calling, often working dozens of hours of overtime in a single week as needed in order to save the lives of critical patients. So Lee wouldn't mind wearing scrubs, seeing as he held nothing but respect for those in the medical profession. Unfortunately, Lee was not wearing scrubs.

"Oh, relax! I'm sure you look fine."

"This is both humiliating and degrading!"

"Well, genius, I do believe that was the point."

"Shut up..."

"Shouldn't have told Neo you'd do _anything_ to make it up to her."

Lee promptly shut his mouth, unable to find anything to rebut that with.

"I hate you."

"Yeah, yeah. Now get out here so Mercury can have his eye candy."

" **Oi!** How many times do I have to tell you? I'm not gay! And even if I was, I wouldn't be gay for _Lee_ of all people!"

"Oh, so you have a type, now?"

Even as the sounds of... _aggressive face-desking_ could be heard, Lee chuckled uneasily while he placed a hand against the restroom door, preparing to step out. He _still_ wasn't quite comfortable... But, for Neo, he would swallow his pride. Besides, this had just become a prime opportunity to mess with Mercury as well. It was definitely sinking his own ship... But at least he wouldn't be the only one humiliated... Probably... Hopefully...

 _'Chup it.'_ The door was opened, and Lee strutted through. "Uh huh. You keep telling yourself that while you ogle these legs." Legs that were currently adorned only in a pair of knee high, white lace stockings and matching platformed boots. Continuing upwards, he was wearing a white mini skirt, an open fronted blouse that revealed a well toned abdomen, and a white lace brassiere.

The room promptly exploded with laughter.

"Yeah yeah yeah, I look ridiculous, I know..."

He may as well not have said anything, for all the indication he received that he'd even been heard. So, with a sigh, Lee strutted the distance from the restroom to the living room, eliciting another round of hysterics as he (unintentionally) nailed the model strut. His destination being Neo, who was currently sprawled on the sofa.

"Y'know, that's not very lady like, Neo: you're only a couple of degrees off from flashing Mercury."

All laughter froze, as Neo slowly turned her head to inspect her current position, then tracked towards Mercury... Who had unconsciously allowed his gaze to travel up Neo's mostly bare legs and under her skirt, only the angle preventing him from seeing more. Lee didn't need to look back towards Neo to realize her expression could most likely freeze Hell over... While _also_ melting an iceberg... Located in the Oort Cloud. _God dammit, Merc, you weren't supposed to actually look..._

A gently restraining hand was pressed against Neo's arm. "Easy there, tigress: you can't really blame the man for window shopping when you've got the merchandise on display. Besides, he wasn't even looking until I called attention to it, so if you're gonna kill anyone, you can kill me."

Normally, Lee wouldn't even think about getting between Neo and her prey; as much as he'd improved during his six months on Remnant, he still wouldn't last very long in a fight against Neo. He liked to think was less a problem of skill and more a problem of fighting style, seeing as he relied on quick, powerful strikes, while Neo relied on using her opponent's own momentum against them. Were they to actually fight, Lee would either overextend on a punch and find himself catapulted across the room (Neo was _the_ master of the Hurricanrana), or he would find himself holding back to the point where he would not be quick enough to hit her. Either way, it would end poorly for Lee. Fortunately for him, however, she couldn't exactly go on the warpath while her leg was wrapped up in bandages, which Lee was in charge of changing on a regular basis, so Lee was safe... For now. He'd _probably_ pay for his stunt later... But he also knew that, assuming Neo didn't just forget about it before she finished healing, she would not be _nearly_ as hard on him as she would Mercury. Who would probably still be subjected to some sort of retribution for daring to take a peek... But, again, since he'd been lured into it, Neo would likely go easy on him. Or at least easy _ish_ , hence why Mercury sighed in relief when Neo turned to stare blankly at Lee.

 _"Don't for a moment think that you're off the hook,"_

 _'Damn it,'_ Lee thought to himself.

Neo smirked. _"But I think I just made Mercury pee himself."_

Lee rolled his eyes. "I doubt that, but okay."

"Doubt what?"

"Nothing, Merc. Just Neo being Neo."

"...Whatever."

Lee rolled his eyes, but refrained from throwing out any sort of barb; he was, after all, still the one currently cross dressed as a nurse albeit, one you might expect to see on Halloween... or in a very tacky pornography. Which reminded him. Err... The nurse part, not the porn. It'd be kind of weird if porn reminded him that he was supposed to be tending to Neo's wound at the moment, right?

"How's the leg feeling, Neo?"

It'd been nearly three weeks now since she'd been shot. And while on Earth that would probably not be a whole lot of time to successfully recover from such a wound, Aura was an amazing thing, one that Lee was grateful for in this instance. Not that he wasn't usually, if anything it was quite the opposite; having grown up on Earth where Aura had never even been heard of, the closest thing he could have equated it to was some sort of cross between ki/chi energy from the Dragonball series and The Wavelength from Soul Eater, with just a dash of magic added in. Which is perhaps why, being fans of both series, he was able to progress so far in his mastery of his own Aura in such a relatively short period of time, but he digressed; the important thing was that with the addition of Aura, or, specifically, the both accelerated and improved healing that came with it, it was very well conceivable that Neo's leg could already be good as new.

 _"Eh, it's mostly fine. Hurts a little if I put weight on it, but I can prod at it now without it really hurting."_

"Hmm..."

Lee crouched down beside her, and gently lifted her off the sofa, eliciting a surprised squawk from the girl as she wrapped an arm around his shoulders for balance. Which made it all the simpler for Lee to then turn and place himself in her previous seat, a surprised and lightly blushing Neo sitting sideways in his lap. Though, at the sound of identical huffs of amusement from Mercury and Emerald, Neo was relatively quick to shift until she was pretty much in the same position as she started, except that she was now almost closer to sitting than she was to laying down, with her back against the sofa's armrest and her thighs, which were currently the subject of Lee's scrutiny, resting in Lee's lap. He didn't fail to miss her blush becoming just a little bit darker.

"Your face is flushed. Could be a fever, which could be a symptom of an infection."

She glared, and he winked; they both were well aware that while her face may have been hot, it was entirely a case of embarrassment. However, that quickly gave way to pain and anger when Lee gave her wound a firm poke, eliciting an audible hiss.

 _"Ow! The chup was that for, jackass?!"_

Lee rolled his eyes, even as he held Neo's legs in place with a firm grip. "Just checking to see whether it'd healed as much as you claim or if you were simply trying to be tough. I think you know which conclusion I just came t- Wait a minute. You said chup."

 _"That I did..."_

"..."

 _"It just flows better in a sentence than that other word."_

"That it does..."

Lee trailed off into a hum as he went to work, carefully unraveling Neo's current bandage in order to get a good look at the wound concealed beneath... A wound, which, at this point, he had to concede barely even counted as such. Sure, he could see where there had once been a gaping hole the width of his thumb... But now, three weeks later, said hole was non existent, the only remaining visual evidence that she ever had been wounded was the slightly discolored tissue that had been regenerated in place of her decimated flesh; the wound had scarred. But, gentle prodding confirmed that the new flesh wasn't tender (in fact, it was actually just a little bit tougher than the surrounding tissues), so he was prepared to concede that she was fully recovered... Or close enough, anyway, so long as she stayed off her leg until the bone stopped bothering her too. All of which he communicated to her as well as the rest of the room.

"Sounds about right, Lee." And with Mercury's judgement matching his own, Lee was confident he'd done everything right; after all, one does not become a highly trained, professional assassin without extensively learning about Human and Faunas anatomy... Including how to diagnose and treat wounds.

"Merc, remind me to keep in mind that you actually do know how to do more than just fight."

"Dammit, I'm not your secretary!"

"Also, remind me that I still need to buy you a uniform; I know I said your legs would look funky in a skirt, but, hey, may as well see it so we'd know for sure, right?"

Face-desk. Chuckles from the ladies in the room. A smirk from Lee himself, before he turned back to Neo.

"You don't need the bandages anymore, but I want you to take it easy on the leg for at least a week."

Lee smiled warmly... But found himself confused when she was still fixing him with a... hopeful gaze? Why would it be hopefu-

A repeated tapping against his currently bare thigh caused him to look at his thighs... Which Neo was bouncing her own bare legs off of.

"Oh. Yeah," Lee smirked at her; there was a reason she chose to wear pants most of the time, and that was because she just simply did not like how childish skirts tended to make her appear, mostly due to her _fun sized_ stature. "You can go change now."

Lee chuckled when in the next moment, Neo was gone, having teleported out of his lap. Undoubtedly directly to her room so she could put on a pair of pants. How fitting it was, then, that it was also during that moment that the apartment's front door opened, admitting Cinder into the room and giving her a perfect view of Lee sitting on the couch, wearing a skirt and blouse. It was the first time he'd ever seen her completely at a loss for words, mouth agape as she attempted to process what she was seeing.

"Umm... I'm going to go put some normal clothes on now..."

And as he strutted back down the hallway, eliciting raucous laughter from Emerald and Mercury, he could not help but think:

 _Totally worth it._

* * *

 ** _Well, I promised to let you all know what was going on that made me push this back, so, here we go: I'm moving, due to my employer losing the business that justified keeping my location open. Combine that with being short staffed at several other locations throughout the region, and you have a prime recipe for getting hammered with overtime on a weekly basis, as myself and my shift counterpart keep getting sent to cover the other locations (leaving me to cover for him while he's gone and vice versa). Which means I've been working six days a week for the last few weeks while going to school on the seventh; not a very conducive situation for pursuing my own hobbies, including this story. Which left me the dilemma; do I compromise quality to get a full length chapter out on time or just slightly late? Or do I split the chapter? Well... As much as I dislike posting a short chapter after the 8 chapter fiasco the previous arc turned in to, I feel as if I must in this case, or else it very well could be another month before the first of my four planned parts for this arc is written and published._**

 ** _And yes, I made an arrow to the knee joke. I'm a terrible person, I know xD_**

 ** _Last thing for now, and I don't normally do this: go check out MeteoriteCreature's "Battle Between Two!" It is basically Death Battle using RWBY OCs. Check it out and submit your own, peeps! Caerulean is set to appear sometime as well (though there are still a few fights that will take place before his, according to MC), and he'll need a good opponent ;)_**

 ** _-Until next time (hopefully, March 19th),_**

 ** _CS_**

 ** _UPDATE_**

 ** _Well, March 19th certainly didn't happen. But fret not, I'm still working on this. In fact, I should have the next chapter done by the end of the week. And if I have it done early, I won't be waiting for Saturday to post seeing as I've made you all wait nearly a month now. I won't say too much about what's written so far... But let's just say that the ship might just be making it's final preparations for it's maiden voyage! So stay tuned for that! :D_**


	23. Chapter 18: La Vida Loca, Part 2

**Chapter 18**

 **La Vida Loca**

 **Part 2**

* * *

"So... Nice weather we're having, yeah?"

Blank looks all around, as Lee's inane comment did nothing to dispel the awkward tension in the air.

"Really, Lee?"

"What? It's true..." Which, itself, was a true statement; despite the fact that Vale was well into its summer months, it was currently somewhat mild outside, the temperature sitting at what he considered a comfortably warm 85 degrees Farenheit (or rather, 30 degrees even; Remnant was apparently on the metric system, which, as a former American, he was still getting used to, even after half a year). But, as he met the gazes of each of the other four members of the quintet, he could see that his attempt to distract them from the elephant in the room had failed. Well, he still had one more card to play before giving it up as a bad job.

Grinning widely, Lee turned towards their resident illusionist. "Perfect for a day of free running, wouldn't ya say, Em?"

The illusionist herself seemed rather taken aback by the direction the conversation had just taken, mouth opening as if to speak before closing again mid-motion, eyes slightly widened and her skin sporting a near imperceptible flush.

"I... Wh- Did you just ask me out on a date?"

"Well, let's see what the judges have to say! Mercury?" A disdainful roll of the eyes. "Neo?" An amused expression accompanied by a thumbs up. "And last but most certainly not least, Cinder!" The woman actually chuckled before nodding, prompting Lee to turn back to Emerald with a smug grin on his face. "That makes it unanimous: I _did_ in fact just ask you on a date! So, whaddaya say? You, me, and a day of traipsing about Vale in this pleasant weather? Assuming Cinder doesn't have a problem with this, of course."

"So long as you two keep things professional during operations, then no, I see no issue. We are not the military."

Lee's hopeful grin faltered a bit as he watched Emerald frown at him... But quickly reached shit eating proportions as she shrugged while wearing the smallest of smiles.

"Sure, why not? Watching you face plant into the concrete a few dozen times sounds like it could be fun."

"I find your lack of faith... Disturbing."

.

..

...

"What are you doing?"

Lee sighed as he lowered his clenched fist, having failed to perform a Force Choke. Apparently, that was one ability he couldn't quite replicate with Aura...

"Oh, just a cultural thing. It's pretty much a tradition to pretend to telekinetically choke someone whenever you say that particular line."

"...Is that anything like a Jed's Eye Mind Trick?"

"It's pronounced 'Jedi,' all one word, and... Close, actually. They come from the same franchise, and while I guess a Jedi technically _could_ do that, it's more of a Dark Side power, and thus more likely to be used by a Sith."

"...What's a Sith?"

Lee chuckled. "I'll tell you all about Star Wars later. Preferably not while Cinder is waiting oh so patiently for us to quit babbling like a couple of teenagers and let her finally get around to telling us whatever it is she had us all convene for, right?"

All eyes turned towards their leader, at whom Lee grinned cheekily. Cinder herself was smiling lazily beneath hooded eyes, an expression which, on anyone else, he probably would have described as predatory. And on Cinder, it still conveyed that particular imagery... But he could read the genuine amusement there as well. It was, he supposed, the way that her eyes crinkled just slightly, and her lips were slightly parted to give just the smallest glimpse of perfectly straight teeth. In fact, now that he was thinking about it, he supposed that expressions like that played a major role in creating the sheer presence that Cinder emitted. Sure, walking around on perfectly formed legs that seemed to go on forever and exhibiting such casual mastery over Dust on a regular basis were enough to make her stand out as a femme fatale, but the way even such a genuine expression of amusement could still easily be read as predatory intent was the master stroke that made Cinder seem all the more dangerous. Her expressions... Nay, her _mannerisms_ in general... They inspired such fear, conveyed such a sense of danger that Lee, despite knowing that Cinder meant him no harm, still felt like the metaphorical mouse trapped between the cat's paws. But after six months of working for her, he had come to be pretty good at suppressing that fear.

"Thank you, Caerulean." Cinder began, her tone now having switched to one that meant business. All four of her minions straightened in their seats. "As you all know, we were never supposed to be in Vale for as long as we already have been."

Lee did, in fact, know that; after a thorough ass chewing at the hands of the boss for his actions towards the end of the fight against Summer, there had been many things he wanted to say to Cinder. But it all boiled down to one word, and that one word was the only one he uttered: why? Why wasn't it enough to simply remove Summer's ability to ever Hunt again? Why did they need to remove her old team Taiyang Xiao Long or as possible factors? Why was it so important that Cinder not be connected to her identity as the Red Queen? Why did they go to such lengths to prevent that? Why? Why? _Why?_

* * *

 **M: +5 D: +15**

 **The Apartment, Vale**

 **Evening**

 **Two Days after the assassination of Summer Rose**

 _Lee... Was not in a good mood, and the reason for that was Summer Rose. Despite months of working for Cinder and knowing that she was not the type to accept her underlings second guessing her decisions, Lee had done so anyway, his outrage at the thought of actually killing someone who did so much good for the world escaping before he could bring it under control. And after a swift smack, Lee had thought quickly enough to realize that he could neither change Cinder's mind nor prevent her from doing so. So, with reluctance, he had decided that he would get out of her way... But the damage had already been done. In the time Lee had distracted them, Summer had managed to surprise them all by fighting through what should have been a crippling injury, managing to wound them all with varying degrees of seriousness before Lee himself finally put her down for good. An act which had only rekindled his rage at the injustice of the situation. Rage which he spent the entire trip back to their campsite, and then home the following day brooding on. It was enough time for it to settle into more of a cold rage... Which was the only thing that kept him from arguing with Cinder when she tore into him once they had finally made it back to the city. It even suppressed his fear of the woman, allowing him the courage to ask her what he did. And the answer..._

 _Lee didn't know how to feel about the answer. According to Cinder... They were acting in pursuit of a higher purpose, the hope of one day bringing about the end of the Grimm scourge upon mankind. That they perpetuated such acts of violence in order to keep the authorities from obstructing them... Because their plan involved the complete breaking of the current authorities. Which Lee was all for, so long as the replacement regime was one that would address the glaring issues that the current one chose to ignore (such as the sheer racism that humans were allowed to perpetuate against Faunas with little to no punishment)... Which they would, since if their plan worked, Cinder and her crew would effectively become the replacement regime. Lee wasn't quite sure he wanted the responsibility... But he supposed that he most certainly couldn't do worse than the current, non-elected council, who somehow had escaped blame for such catastrophes as Mountain Glenn. That was the reason Cinder insisted on all of them excelling at their education; can't have the regime's top men and women not be both knowledgeable about the world they planned to rule, and effective in actually ruling it. And rule it they would, for they would need the Kingdoms' resources for Cinder's plan to eradicate the Grimm once and for all..._

 _It frustrated Lee to no end that Cinder wouldn't tell him just what that plan entailed, but he still trusted her. He was wary, but he would trust her. She had said that he would understand once she had the chance to show him and Neo (who, coincidentally, had not yet been told either) just what it is they would be putting themselves up against... So for at least that long, Lee would cooperate... Or at the very least, not become an obstruction..._

* * *

The light Lee's eyes were emitting dimmed as he brought his mind back to the present, just in time to catch Cinder telling them the import of reminding them of the fact they weren't supposed to be in Vale for most of a year (they, meaning Cinder, Emerald, and Mercury, had already been there for a few months before Neo and then Lee joined them). Apparently, Junior had tracked down a lead on the White Fang.

"Wait, what?"

All eyes swiveled to face Lee, who was frowning in confusion. "Wait, don't tell me. Let me see if I can work it out." He took the silence as permission to try, so he proceeded to think: why would Cinder need to find the White Fang? Before the assassination of Summer Rose, Lee might have guessed that the government or some other interested faction was paying them to perform either some recon or an assault... But now, he knew better; it simply wasn't Cinder's style. So that meant they had something she wanted, and the only thing he could think of that they had in abundance that would _also_ coincide with what he knew of Cinder's plans was...

"You want to use them as the foot soldiers in the revolution."

"Correct as usual, Caerulean. But we are _not_ going to tell them that if it can be avoided."

"Well duh, it's generally a bad idea to blatantly state to someone that you are just using them, even if it is obvious. Just gotta make sure they think it's worth their while. On that front, I assume that you have a plan to convince them."

"Well, it would be accurate to say that the saying involving assumptions does not apply in this case."

It took them about half a second, but once Lee and the rest had identified just what saying she was referring to, they all could not help but let out a few small chuckles. Say what you like about Cinder, but you couldn't deny that she had jokes... even if only occasionally. But that just made it all the funnier when she did deign to use one. At least in Lee's opinion.

"Okay, so you have a plan. What do you need us to do?"

Cinder smiled then, approval showing through the underlying, predatory gleam. "Originally, I had planned to go myself, bringing Emerald and Mercury along with me. However, in light of your own feelings on Human-Faunas relations, I believe you may actually be better suited for the job. You will take Emerald and Mercury with you to negotiate an alliance. Think you can handle that?"

Lee blinked. Opened his mouth as if to say something... Blink. Close. Head tilt. "Well, if negotiations fail it won't be because I chupped up. But... Why me? I would think that for something that important you'd prefer to do it yourself? They might perceive you sending an underling to negotiate on your behalf as an insult, as if you consider yourself superior to them. Something that I would think we'd be better off not portraying." A quick glance around the table showed that the other three were equally surprised, leading Lee to believe this had to be a last second change. Or perhaps one that she hadn't been sure of until recently... Which Lee found strange, considering the outcome and aftermath of their previous mission, just a few short weeks ago. But, if Cinder was willing to place such trust in him, he'd do his damndest to make sure that she was making the right choice. Just... It'd be nice to know just why she thought it was.

Cinder obliged. "While you are correct that they may take offense, it is quite likely they are going to take offense anyway simply because we are all human. But you're the type who believes that a person is a person, and that Faunas are simply humans with an extra appendage or two and heightened senses, correct?"

Lee nodded, even as he noticed Neo shooting him an amused look while holding up one finger. But he wasn't about to acknowledge that while he was having a serious conversation with Cinder. "Yeah. Where I grew up, discrimination was usually based on the color of one's skin or their religion; in fact, people of mine and Emerald's skin tone spent two centuries enslaved, and then another century and change trying to obtain the same legal rights that people of pale skin had. Hell, there's still lingering traces of it... So having grown up with that history, I find any kind of discrimination based on one's physical traits to be atrocious. Including whether or not they have animal ears or tails."

"And that, Caerulean, is why I feel I can trust you to deal with this. You understand, at least to some extent, what the Faunas have gone through, so you should be the best equipped to appeal to their sense of injustice."

Lee... Wasn't quite sure it would work like that; he might have been able to empathize with the Faunas, and thus gain some insights towards their motivations and thought processes, but that was without a doubt a one way street. All that did was give Lee an avenue to pursue that Cinder herself would not understand as easily... But if Cinder thought that was their best chance for success, well...

"Alright, then. I'll give it my best shot, ma'am."

"That's all I ask, Caerulean."

Off to the side, Neo now had two fingers raised. Lee rolled his eyes, even as he smirked, but continued to otherwise ignore her in favor of allowing Cinder to finish her briefing.

"Junior is currently compiling a dossier on their leader; it should be ready some time this evening. Caerulean, Emerald, do be darlings and pick those up sometime before you return from your date."

"Y-yes, ma'am..."

"Understood. Anything else?"

"Just make sure that you're both back at a decent time; tomorrow is going to be a long day, so we had best make an early start."

"Got it. I suppose we'll be going then," Lee stated as he rose from his seat; he didn't even need to look to see that Neo was now holding up three fingers. "Em?"

"Yeah, I'm ready. Let's go."

* * *

 _ **And that's a wrap, for what was originally supposed to be the second half of the first chapter. Sorry you guys had to wait so long for that, but man has it been difficult trying to find time to just sit down and write; most of that has been planned since I first started writing the first part, but I wasn't able to find the time to actually write it until yesterday between -still- getting slammed with overtime, and then having to pack up both the home and the office/lab because the company ended up pulling out of my area. But fear not, I still have a job, so I'm gonna be okay. Sigh. At least it's done now, and with some actual plot progression in this chapter to boot. Hopefully, I can get back to my previous schedule of one chapter every other week... Hopefully. We'll see.**_

 _ **Oh, bonus points if you caught what Neo was counting! Shouldn't be too hard to spot.**_

 _ **Update: While I will still respond to most reviews via message, two of the reviews this chapter have received thus far contain what I can see becoming frequently asked questions so I'll answer them here.**_

 _ **Q: Do Cinder and Co. know that Lee is from a different world?**_

 _ **A: That is what Lee has told them. It's mentioned outright during Lee's not-romantic lunch date with Neo back in Immersion Part 4, but it can also be assumed that he has told each of them at some point over the six months he's been on Remnant. Whether or not they believe him is a different can of worms altogether though, which I may or may not open at some point.**_

 _ **Q: Lee's black?**_

 _ **A: Yes, yes he is. Half, and I didn't exactly draw attention to it before now (though I did mention it during the first arc while he was observing Emerald, and the Dossier after Networking mentions that his skin is "light brown", as compared to Emerald's being listed as "medium brown" on the wiki), so there's no need to feel like Church when he found out that Tucker was black ^_^**_

 _ **Until next time,**_

 _ **-C.S.**_

 _ **Update: Orrrrr I can go to working sixtyish plus hours a week. That's cool too. Lol. I'm still working on this though! Despite the insane work schedule, I have been working on this pretty regularly, but I kept getting stuck in the action sequence for next chapter. I won't spoil it for you guys before I finish, but so far I've got about 2.5 thousand words of setting and action, and am probably only halfway through the latter, so I expect this will be one of my longer chapters by the time I finish writing it (hopefully within the next few weeks). Thanks for staying with me so far!**_

 _ **-Cerulean**_


	24. Chapter 19: La Vida Loca, Part 3

**Chapter 19**

 **La Vida Loca**

 **Part 3**

* * *

The city of Vale was, without a doubt, one of the more... Unique places Lee had seen in his lifetime. Being one of only four cities existing on the entire world of Remnant, it was, by necessity, a large one, with a population somewhere between that of New York City and the entire Los Angeles Metropolitan Area... About 10 million. However, if one were simply to stroll through one of the city's districts, they would probably think it was a smaller one, seeing as other than the world famous Cross Continental Transmit tower, there weren't too many high rise buildings, and it had a sort of Victorian feel to the architecture, combined with surprisingly sparse roads and sidewalks to give the place an open feel. Sure, there were plenty of 5-10 story apartment buildings and businesses, but nothing other than the CCT which could be considered a true skyscraper. In the Residential District, most of the taller buildings were aligned in a rough ring around the district, with the apartments within being rented relatively cheap on the Western and Eastern ends of the District due to their close proximity to the noisier Industrial District and the city's Eastern wall, respectively. Seeing as Cinder hadn't originally planned on being in Vale very long, she had chosen to sign a lease on an apartment on the South East End in order to save lien when she inevitably abandoned it... But it also meant that Lee and Emerald were going to have to travel the entire length of the residential district in order to get anywhere. Which sucked, because in order to fit a population of roughly 10 million, without an abundance of skyscrapers, and also be 100% self sufficient, the city had to be _huge._ As in, 75,000 square kilometers. Which meant, given that Vale was roughly rectangular, nearly 300 km just to reach the West side of the residential district, named Riverside due to the river bordering it on three different sides.

Thank the powers that be for public transportation. Currently, Lee and Emerald were riding the train from the East End out towards the Industrial District, where they planned on picking up Emerald's... Umm...

"Hey, Em?"

"Yeah?"

"Just what do you call your weapons?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, they're pistols, sickles, and kusarigama all in one. The best I could come up with was "Kusari-gun-ma." Or perhaps "Kusari-gun-kles?""

"Not entirely terrible ideas, I'll give you that, but I've just been calling them convertible revolver-sickles."

"That _does_ sound a little more badass."

"And professional."

"That too."

Okay. So, now that Lee knew what to call them, they were on their way to pick up one of Emerald's _convertible revolver sickles_ from a weapon craftsman located on the Northeastern border of the Industrial District (a location which Lee had found odd, but apparently zoning laws required it be located there since the proprietor fabricated most of his own parts, and the equipment used to do so was something the military could and would take over in a time of emergency)... And Mercury's left leg. A few weeks ago, both it and one of Emerald's revolver-sickles had met their demises in the form of the late Huntsman Ronald Springfield's battle axe. Which, coincidentally, Neo had looted off of the man. Lee had promptly laughed his ass off the first time he watched her attempt to fight with it; the tiny woman was literally half the height of a battle axe made to be significantly taller than a man who was nearly seven feet tall, coming in at a total height of 2.9 meters, or roughly 9.5 feet. Neo, of course, had pouted, but then reminded Lee that the material had been strong enough to cleave straight through Mercury's metal leg, so it was worth keeping around. Lee was of the opinion that Neo would be better off not trying to overcompensate for something, and should simply have it smelted down and reforged to replace the estoc in her umbrella. But, Neo remained insistent in wanting to try to master that axe. _"Because it's mine!"_ In this instance, Lee was certain that she would eventually come to see reason and concede defeat, so he didn't press... But still, it would have saved them a couple of trips to the forge.

Oh well. At least Emerald would finally be back to her full capabilities. Not that she wasn't capable of fending off opponents with only one of her revolver-sickles, or even unarmed if need be, but she was definitely at her best whilst dual wielding.

"Next stop: Industrial NW. Next stop: Industrial Northwest. Please exercise caution as the vehicle slows to a stop..."

Lee tuned the automated voice out, in favor of shooting Emerald, standing next to him (it was a crowded train), a mischievous grin. To which she responded with a cautiously amused smirk in anticipation of antics being planned. Smirking harder, Lee leaned down to mutter: "Race you to the forge. Loser buys lunch afterwards?"

"I never have been one to turn down a free meal."

Both grinned at the greenette's retort. Now that the gauntlet had been thrown and picked up, there would be no mercy. Lee just had to wait for the train to stop, and for the doors to open. Once that happened, he'd-

"Ow! H-hey! No fair!"

Emerald had beaten him to it, by stomping on his shin the moment the doors had opened, causing him to flinch while she dashed out the doors and on to the platform. But Lee wasn't about to give up; instead of hopping around on the one foot until the pain receded, he forced himself to shut out the pain and chase after her. An ability that, ironically, Emerald herself was responsible for helping him to develop, during his earliest days on Remnant. It was fortunate for Lee, as it meant Emerald only managed to get about a three second head start on him, which, while significant, was not enough to be completely insurmountable. Especially considering that they still had to dodge and weave through pedestrian traffic in the station.

 _"Well,"_ he thought, _"At least I'll have the advantage until we get outside."_ Being nearly six feet tall and visibly built like an athlete beneath his button up shirt, most pedestrians yielded when they saw him coming; after all, most people would prefer not to be run over. In contrast, Emerald was a third of a foot shorter, and even though she was built athletically as well, she was also slender, so while she theoretically could just bulldoze through, she would have to obey the ebb and flow of pedestrian traffic if she wanted to avoid causing a scene. And seeing as, roughly thirty seconds into the race, Lee didn't hear any complaints except from those who he had accidentally jostled so far, it was safe to assume that she was trying to avoid actively bowling people over.

 _"Good, that'll give me a chance to catch up before we make it out into the open."_

And catch up he did... If, by catching up, one meant that he closed the gap from three seconds to a little over one. He had watched her vault over the turnstiles and then slide down the railing (the train routes were, usually, elevated to somewhere between two and three stories above ground level), giving a (fake) cheery smile to the people around her. Lee himself chose a more direct route, choosing to vault the safety railing surrounding the platform and hit the ground running.

 _"I don't know why she looks so shocked, I did the same thing at The Club."_ But Emerald's shock didn't last long, costing her maybe a step or two before she raced off, Lee perhaps a dozen steps behind her. And slowly losing ground.

 _"Okay, Lee, think; she's faster than you, and has few to no avoidable obstacles in her path. You can keep going for longer than she can... But she can probably get most of the way there before she even slows down, thanks to the distance she'll pick up in the meantime. Gotta add another variable..."_

But other than persist in chasing her, Lee was at a loss for ideas. Short of hitching a ride on the roofs of passing cars, he couldn't think of a w-

 _"Wait a minute. I can do that easily."_

And he did; with a single leap, Lee leapt from the sidewalk to the street, landing on the roof of an approaching car. No doubt startling the driver, but, admirably, he continued on. Traffic was a little heavy to come to an abrupt stop, after all. It was rather fortunate for Lee, however, as he was able to rapidly leap from one car to the next, adding their speed to his until he was running along the top of a truck and just about caug-

Blearily, Lee shook the stars from his eyes. Wondering just where the chup that street light had come from. Of course, he didn't have to ponder for long, as the sound of laughter pierced through the dizziness.

"Chupmothering hun dan schutta... Shtako that hurts! Now I know what it must feel like to be Wile E. Coyote... Ta ma de..."

Glaring at the culprit, Lee staggered to his feet, idly thanking the powers that be for allowing him to somehow land on the sidewalk rather than in the middle of the street. With a groan, Lee reached down into his pocket in search of a certain bottle of pills, and gladly consumed one once it had been found. Almost instantly, the headache he was suffering from mostly receded, causing him to once again marvel at the potency and effectiveness of the (admittedly, in this case, not technically legal) medicine on Remnant... But, he was starting to get off track. At the moment, a certain mint-haired thief had just climbed her way to the top of his shit list... And if the sudden widening of her eyes before she took off down a side alley was any indication, she knew it too.

"Yeah, you'd better run! Because you, my dear, are in for it!"

With that declaration, Lee too was off, running at a dead sprint to keep his quarry in sight. With Emerald's little stunt, he had stopped viewing this race as a game, and instead began to treat it as a battle. A battle that Emerald had initiated by using her Semblance to make Lee not see the perfectly face height street light... With that, the metaphorical gloves came off, and the more literal ones were put on.

Gritting his teeth in concentration, Lee activated his own Semblance, causing his eyes to glow and time to move at a slower pace. And with it came an enhanced awareness of his own senses, allowing him to time his steps just that much better. Combined with now being able to make minute adjustments to the flow of his Aura and achieve with finesse what most would do with brute force (though the latter certainly still contributed), it made it easy to make a running leap from the ground to seize a third story fire escape, and then swing himself into the air, a blast of Air aimed downwards at the apex of his arc propelling him the final few feet upwards in order to clear the edge of the roof and (almost) stick a super hero landing, another Air blast allowing him to near instantly shoot forwards again. A manic grin appeared on his face as he caught sight of Emerald's own surprised expression, having looked over her shoulder from the other side of the roof top, mid leap. And it was made all the better since he was seeing it in slow motion. Apparently, she hadn't quite expected Lee to pull off that maneuver in such fashion.

"Don't you dare underestimate me, Em!"

"You haven't impressed me yet!"

Lee grunted in displeasure as he made the first leap, while Emerald was already halfway across the next roof. He didn't care what she said, he'd executed that move with style, dammit!

 _"Alright, lets see you deny this..."_

Using much the same principle as when he'd boosted himself onto the roof, Lee began to use bursts of Air to augment his steps, pushing harder and traveling further with each step, thus covering more ground faster. Emerald was growing larger in his sight as he closed the distance, and when she was close enough to reach out and grab? He couldn't resist the opportunity to do what he did next.

A satisfying clap was heard.

"Ow! Hey!"

Emerald's startled yelp, and her flustered flush, glimpsed as he passed her by, was well worth the retaliation he was sure to to be subject to later. But just what had he done to provoke such a response?

Well. To put it simply:

He smacked that ass.

Hard. As in, hard enough to lift her an extra couple of inches off the ground just from the impact alone... Which he promptly paid for when his feet were suddenly lassoed by a chain, too fast for him to do anything about before he tripped. He was, however, able to just grab a hold of it during the resultant tumble, causing Emerald to go down as well when she was unable to react quickly enough to simply let go of her end. This became a problem when they tumbled off the side of a five story building.

"Shtaaaaaaaak-oof!"

Fortunately, Lee had landed on something plastic, the thick yet hollow material denting and preventing him from breaking anything. And even better, he'd managed to catch Emerald, who was currently digging her nails into his chest like a frightened cat, cushioning her fall so that, other than the trauma of nearly experiencing death or at least a maiming via fall, she seemed to be unharmed. On the downside... Well, Lee himself was feeling the impact, even through his Aura. And Emerald, now realizing that she was okay, had lifted her head to turn her visage upon him.

Idly, Lee noted that had this been a novel, this would usually be the moment where the damsel turns her doe-eyed gaze upon the hero, who is stricken with the most powerful, possibly irresistible urge to kiss her. Emerald certainly did have the eyes for the innocent look, and had she used them, Lee would have been helpless. But that's not what happened. In fact, that was probably the furthest thing from what happened.

Emerald glared. And, fulfilling a different cliché, Lee found it to be one of the cutest things he'd ever seen. Probably because of the aforementioned large, innocent looking (despite being blood red) eyes. Sure, he was well aware that an angry Emerald could very well be a scary Emerald, and at the thought, the phantoms of bruises long faded began to twinge... But it had been months since Emerald could consistently defeat Lee in a fight, and those fights, as well as more one-sided ones against Mercury, had helped Lee to develop quite the tolerance for pain. So he really did not experience any sort of fright at the thought of Emerald turning violent on him. But that isn't to say that he would simply allow her to wale on him indefinitely... Which she certainly attempted.

For his part, Lee let her get a few good hits in before he caught both her wrists and her gaze. For a moment, Emerald struggled... But only for a moment. Either her rage had abetted, or she'd simply realized that violence would be futile in this instance. Either way, it resulted in her calming down... And Lee grinned suggestively as he watched her flush, having finally realized the compromising position they were in.

"You know, we have _got_ to stop meeting like this! It would be so much easier if we could reach this point without all the violence!"

And while Lee did expect Emerald's initial scowl, he did not expect her to then match his own suggestive demeanor. Nor did he expect her to then lean down so that her next words, spoken with sensual allure, were delivered from her lips, almost directly to Lee's own.

"Well that wouldn't be nearly as fun, now, would it?"

And at that point, Lee knew he was about to make a liar of himself. He had previously told Mercury, and had even convinced himself, that he wasn't going to seriously pursue Emerald as a romantic interest before she turned 18... But, now that she was right there in front of him, apparently willing to get into some sort of physical relationship, it was hard to hold to that conviction. After all, after the events of the last six months, Lee was hardly concerned with the legality of things. And it wouldn't exactly be illegal, with the age of consent on Remnant being 16, no ifs ands, or buts about it. No, the only thing that made Lee actually care about that was the morality of getting into a relationship with someone that young... But could he even really consider her a child at this point? She had been a participant in a pair of homicides just a few weeks ago, and had killed another herself back during the Xiong massacre. She'd lived alone on the streets for an amount of time before she met Cinder, and after she had, she'd decided to help her conquer the world (or at least Vale) in order to destroy the Grimm, and was actively working to do so. And, perhaps most importantly, she was emotionally stable after all of that. So, Lee decided, she wasn't a child... And that meant it was okay to have a physical relationship with her. Unfortunately, the moment seemed to be slipping, as Emerald was beginning pull away, the beginnings of a disappointed expression beginning to form.

Lee wasn't about to let that happen. Now that he'd decided he really wanted this, and Emerald was willing to share it with him, he was damn well going to take it.

"No, it wouldn't..."

And take it he did, reaching up to gently capture her lips with his own before he closed his eyes.

It was awkward, at first. Lee had surprised her just as the moment was beginning to pass, so there was initially no response. But then she did, and... Well... It was nice. Pleasurable, for sure, despite the clumsiness on her part that led Lee to believe this was actually her first kiss. But he wasn't in love, so there were no fireworks, no metaphorical freezing of time, no choir of angels affirming that this was meant to be. It was a kiss, and that's all it was. Nothing special... But still enjoyable. Very much so.

Lee smiled as he pulled away, his eyes opened just in time to catch a glimpse of Emerald's expression, eyes closed and lips just slightly parted, dazed from the kiss. Which caused Lee's smile to widen as she too opened her eyes and smiled, glad to see he wasn't the only one who'd enjoyed himself.

"I think I could get used to that..."

At Emerald's musing, Lee couldn't help but chuckle. "Lucky me, I suppose."

"I'm still mad at you."

"...You started it."

"You hit me!"

"It was a swat, and you made me run into a traffic light!"

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Oh, so you're both a thief and a liar!"

"No, you're just clumsy."

"I am _not_ clumsy!"

"Yes you are."

"No I'm not."

"Yes you are."

"Maybe compared to you, little miss sticky fingers, but I know you saw me stick that super hero landing back there! That is _not_ clumsy! That is the _furthest_ thing from clumsy!"

"You were also rotated about 15 degrees too far."

"So I could break into a sprint! Also, I landed it from a _backflip_!"

"...Eh."

"Grrrrrr!"

"Did you just growl at me?"

"So what if I d-"

" _Ahem_."

Both of the bickering teens froze at the new voice, turning matching annoyed expressions onto the intruder. Simultaneously, they grit out: "What!"

Sheepishly, the red maned man just held up a full garbage bag and pointed to whatever it was Lee was laying on.

"Em?"

"Yeah?"

"We're on top of a dumpster, aren't we?"

Emerald's response was merely to sigh.

"Well, chup. Okay, man, we'll be out of your way in a second."

A few moments later, Lee and Emerald were off the dumpster and standing before the lion Faunas, who had finished taking out the trash. And was now staring at the two with an amused expression on his face.

"So I take it that you two haven't been an item for very long?"

"I wonder what gave you that impression..."

While Emerald was snarking, however, Lee was frowning. Red mane, lion's tail, looks to be about their age? Lee was certain he'd yet to actually even meet a lion Faunas, and was certain he'd remember the occasion if he had, so why did this guy seem familiar?

"Oh, just the way you seemed to be surprised that he actually kissed you."

Had Lee not been trying to figure out where he knew this guy from, he would probably have joined him in laughing at Emerald's flustered sputtering. But really, he just could not get past the fact that this teenager, dressed in greasy overalls, somehow looked familiar.

"You two training to be Hunters? I don't recall seeing you around Signal..."

Lee, mentally shrugging as he decided he wasn't going to figure it out just by staring, decided to answer. "We are, but we couldn't really afford combat academy. We have a mutual friend who has been kind enough to teach us, though. She's a bit of a badass."

"You have a Huntress training you two personally?"

"And two others. But yes, that is correct." If one considered Cinder a Huntress, anyway. Which... Lee was just now realizing he did not know if she ever had been.

"That's pretty cool! I suppose that means you'll have an easy time getting into Beacon when the time comes. I'll be going next year. How about you guys?"

"Well..." Lee looked to Emerald for help, not quite sure how to dig themselves out of this hole. Did they just continue with the lie and claim they were going to Beacon, and risk him possibly remembering it later?

"We were actually thinking about attending Haven. Our mentor is originally Mistrali, and still quite young herself, so her contact network is mostly out there. We'll have an easier time getting in over there, as well as access to more outside resources than if we were to attend Beacon."

Or, they could tell an easier, noncommittal lie. That was a much better idea.

"Oh. That makes sense. Well, perhaps you guys would like to hang out some time? The Bear's Den is a pretty cool place, despite the fact that everyone knows that the Axe Gang is based out of there. They actually just renovated it recently, apparently some rival gang came in and trashed the place a little over a month ago."

"Aha! That's where I recognized you from!"

"Eh?"

"I'm pretty sure I saw you get turned away on the night of that incident. I was at the cafe across the street with another friend."

"Huh. Go figure. You must have one helluva memory."

"Eh, it's a side effect of my Semblance."

"Cool. Well, since then, The Den has a new manager, who apparently doesn't hate Faunas enough to not do business with us, so it's been a pretty mixed crowd lately. If you guys ever feel like coming by, some friends and I are usually there on Friday nights."

Off to the side, Emerald subtly cleared her throat.

"We'll definitely keep that in mind..."

"Jin."

"Jin. I'm Lee, and this is Em. We'll definitely drop by sometime, but for now, we'd really better get going."

"The mistress beckons, eh? Heh, no worries, it's cool, it's just about time for me to come off my break anyway. See you two later!"

"You bet!"

With a smile and a wave, Lee and Emerald finally exited the alleyway, this time at a walk as they finally moved on towards their destination.

Wait a second...

"Weren't we in the middle of a race?"

Both froze for a moment, stopping to look at each other... And then they were off, the thought of winning a free lunch off of the other reigniting the "friendly" competition...

* * *

 ** _I will be placing this story on a brief hiatus, hopefully not lasting longer than a couple of months, but potentially lasting as many as four. Partially because of my work situation, but also for issues with the story itself. Chief amongst them being that, despite having succeeded in telling an engaging story with both drama and humor, I haven't quite succeeded at making it feel... Personal. Which it needs to be, since I'm telling this story as if it's a series of flashbacks from some point in the future. Maybe I just need more of the "interview" things... Maybe I just need to go and rewrite most of the earlier chapters to feel more personal. Either way, all of my planned edits need to be done before I get too much further into the story, so that 1: I don't forget some of the smaller, more trivial ones, and 2: so that those of you who have already read this far will have a chance to go back and re-read it while it's only about 20 chapters being re-done, rather than, say, 35 or 40 if I were to wait until I finish the first volume. Which brings me to my next point: this WILL be a multi-volume story. At the moment, I my goal is for this one to stretch until I've covered all the events in Fall: Emerald and Merc being recruited and their backstories, which I've touched upon, the hunt for the Fall Maiden (which I am in the middle of), the forming of the alliance with the White Fang (preluded at the beginning of this arc), recruiting Roman, etc. Then there's Neo's backstory and how she came to be part of Cinder's group (which I have not really delved into other than saying she told Lee about it at some point). On top of all of that, I also intend to finally getting around to write an actual prologue, which will most likely be from Cinder's viewpoint, and detail her first encounter with Lee. I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm pretty excited for that part. I think you will be too after this little snippet from it:_**

* * *

 _There are three types of people in the world. Most are the first type: Sheep. Sheep are kind, gentle, productive creatures who, generally, only manage to cause harm by accident. They are peaceful by nature... But are incapable of defending the peace. Still, despite such a seemingly negative portrayal, the second type of people tended to view them with both fondness and affection._

Click.

Click.

Click.

 _The Woman in Red shared that view. They were, after all, society's backbone, gifted with a wide gamut of talents. Without them, the second type, Sheepdogs, would have no reason to exist. For the Sheepdog, gifted with the gift of aggression, seeks to use that gift, taking on the roles of police, firemen, soldiers and Hunters. Whichever path they choose to specialize in, their purpose is unified, their goal, one: to serve and protect._

Click.

Click.

Click.

 _The Woman in Red was not a Sheepdog. For while she was indeed gifted with aggression, she had long since lost the desire to protect. No, she had found herself a different aspiration, one more suited to her talents... And the Wolf would not be denied. The Wolves of society were the liars, thieves, and murderers... And to achieve her goals, the Woman in Red was willing to resort to all three._

Click.

Click.

Click.

 _Perhaps it was the way her amber eyes, peeking out from behind a glittering black mask, seemed to almost glow, giving them the appearance of lit embers to illuminate her predatory smirk. Or perhaps it was her poise, the way that her legs, long, bare, and immaculately smooth, slowly, sensually sashayed down the alley, her heels tapping out a steady rhythm against the stone. In the end, it mattered not, for the effect was the same: the Sheepdogs before her had been reduced to mere Sheep in her presence... And it would be a lie to say that she wasn't enjoying the moment._

Click.

 _The Woman in Red crinkled her eyes in pleasure as her prey finally backed into a wall, having reached a dead end. The Sheep were boxed in, now, with buildings to their sides and the Wolf directly ahead. The only way to escape was through her..._

 _In other words, they wouldn't._

* * *

 ** _So to keep a list of my objectives for this hiatus:_**

 ** _Write a prologue. (Complete! Posted!)_**

 ** _Add Date Stamps to Immersion. (Aborted, Unnecessary)_**

 ** _Edit/Rewrite Immersion. (In Progress)_**

 ** _Add a couple of interludes after Immersion. (Aborted.)_**

 ** _Add a couple of interludes after Networking. (Aborted.)_**

 ** _Make Escalation into fewer chapters (Cancelled)_**

 ** _Add a scene to Escalation 3, shortly after Lee and Neo leave the town. NOT an Interlude (Scheduled, Summer's Group)_**

 ** _Combine the first two parts of La Vida Loca into a single chapter. (Aborted)_**

 ** _Complete La Vida Loca arc. (Complete! Will be posted when I finish editing Immersion)_**

 ** _Add a codex/wiki to keep track of things. This will likely be posted as a separate story, and updated at the end of each arc. (Postponed)_**

 ** _Add more pathos to Lee's character. (Ongoing)_**

 ** _Bring cohesion to currently unrelated/irrelevant details. (Ongoing)_**

 ** _Add depth to Lee's relationships with the rest of the main cast. (Ongoing)_**

 ** _Go into Neo's backstory and how she came to be part of Cinder's group. (Planning, likely to be told in pieces.)_**


	25. Chapter 20: La Vida Loca Part 4

_**Alright. Before we begin, I'd just like to let those of you who have been following the story know that I didn't quite go through with all my planned edits. All changes I made were relatively minor, the most relevant being that I changed Emerald's role in the fight in Networking and tried to make it a little more obvious she was the one messing with Lee's perception back in Immersion, despite Lee thinking it was Neo somehow doing it. Couple of words changed here, a couple of sentences added there... It's not necessary to go back and reread. Especially since I only really edited the first two arcs. I've decided to give up on most of the ideas I had for Interludes, though I may go back and do the Xiong/Malachite one as a side story at some future date. Umm... Yeah. That's it for that. Now without further ado, let's (finally) get back to the story!**_

 **Chapter 20**

 **La Vida Loca**

 **Part 4**

* * *

"I can _not_ believe you're actually eating that."

"What?" Lee's defensive tone could be heard as he looked up from his meal, face clean.

"Those things are so... _greasy_. Which, I recall, was your reason for not going out for a burger with Merc the last time he offered."

Lee couldn't help but look down at his hands, resisting the urge to sigh as he did. They were, in fact, covered in grease at this point, but they were also holding a delicacy that he'd never thought to see replicated on Remnant, despite the fact that you could find it just about anywhere in his home nation (assuming you were willing to settle for an inferior knockoff attempt, that is). It had been a specialty of the region he'd lived in before coming to Remnant, a region which had not been his home region. At first, Lee had been skeptical of the greasy delicacy as well, seeing as he was usually the type to go for more wholesome, healthier foods; the body is a temple and should not be polluted with garbage. But once he'd actually tried one, made at one of the two locations (directly across from each other, naturally) where it had all began, it was love at first bite. But just what greasy delicacy had Lee fallen in love with, one might ask? Well, to answer that, all one has to do is ask what to call it when finely sliced beefsteak, onions, and melted cheese are put on a hoagie roll. And the answer to that, is a cheesesteak. Of course, that was only the basic recipe... As was the remaining half of one in his hands.

Finally, he sighed.

"To be honest, I can't believe I'm eating this either; as far as cheesesteaks go, this is kinda average. But I'm telling you, once you've had a proper cheesesteak, you'll understand, they're _that_ good."

"Uh huh... I'll put that on the list of things I'll have to take your word for, right after Star Wars."

"Ugh. Just enjoy your chicken salad."

"I will, seeing as you paid for it."

"Ugh... Rub it in, why don'tcha..."

Lee had, unfortunately, lost the race from earlier, which meant that, per their wager, he was forced to pay for Emerald's lunch. Which, contrary to what one might expect from their conversation, actually turned out to be somewhat expensive, consisting of a grilled chicken and berry salad, topped with a Forever Fall vinaigrette (made with real tree sap!), a side of ciabatta bread, and a large green tea with Forever Fall tree sap and honey... Lee had decided he hated Forever Fall sap when it doubled the cost of Emerald's lunch.

"Hey, you're the one who came up with this."

 _'Yeah, because I thought I could win...'_ Lee was smart enough to _not_ say; that would have just left himself open to further torment, no matter how close he actually had come to triumph (which was actually fairly close, Emerald having only slipped by him again when they reached the final, open stretch). Instead, he resorted to visibly swallowing what was left with his lunch, along with his pride...

Emerald's smug smirk didn't need to be seen in order for it to rankle.

* * *

A short while later, Lee and Emerald were once again on the streets of Vale, this time strolling nonchalantly... Or at least, as nonchalantly as a pair can when burdened with a trio of metal cases, one of them roughly the length of their buddy's left leg. There were, of course, a collection of curious and wary stares directed at them, but most of those dissipated once they also caught sight of the colorful outfits and openly carried weapons the both of them were sporting, those and their young age (falsely) identifying them as Hunters-in-Training. Of course, their banter wouldn't have done much to dissuade passers-by of the notion.

"I can't _wait_ to try these bad boys out!" Lee exclaimed, hefting the longer (and heavier) of the two cases he was carrying. It was roughly the length of a sniper rifle, but wider than one would expect were a sniper rifle the actual contents.

"Just... Not on me, please."

"Oho!" Lee exclaimed with a grin. "Are you going to admit that I'm the superior fighter now?"

Emerald scoffed. "If that's what it takes to satisfy your ego."

"Eh, I satisfied it myself when I realized I was beating you more often than not."

"Congratulations, you can beat a girl! It only took you, what, six months?"

Lee could only frown and watch her raise her nose in triumph, a smug little grin on her face; that had, after all, been a death blow in this little argument. Still...

"It was closer to _five_... And you've been a fighter for _far_ longer than I have!"

"Yeah, right. I still think you were hustling me that first sparring session."

"I'm telling you, I had no idea that I was that good!"

"I wouldn't call it _good_ , per se."

"You _know_ what I meant! I really don't remember having any training before I met you guys!"

"So you expect me to believe I got beat by a total amateur?"

"Well when you put it like that, no. But that's not what I'm saying."

"Well then, what _are_ you saying?"

"I don't know. Maybe, somehow, the basics were imprinted on me by whatever brought me here."

* * *

 _At this point, it's worth mentioning that, while I had won my very first spar against Emerald, my skills at the time were truly describable only as 'the basics,' winning only because she hadn't been prepared for me to be able to keep up with her speed. She had won each of our remaining bouts that day, and every day after that; it would be a full month and a half before I would win again, and three before I could consistently manage 2 out of 5. With Emerald herself having been a skilled enough martial artist at the time to count as an upper level brown belt (1st degree black belt by this point in the story), it was quite understandable that she would find it difficult to believe she had lost to someone who supposedly had no combat training at all, be it formal or gleaned from experience. Which led her to the conclusion:_

* * *

"Or maybe you're just full of shit."

* * *

 _Of course, I myself would readily admit that I had trouble believing it, which was why I didn't plan on ever telling anybody else about it, and concocted a false background for the benefit of anybody who might find themselves wondering. But I genuinely did not know what else he could say to convince the four who I had already told; I had already told them the truth as I remembered it that day, without any omissions or embellishment. So in that instance, as in several before and to come, all I could say was:_

* * *

"Does it really matter?"

* * *

 _The simple fact of the matter, as agreed upon by both myself and Emerald, as well as our friends/colleagues, was that I was obviously an amnesiac; I knew too little about much of anything about Remnant. The only logical conclusions, beyond being from a different time/dimension, were that I was either mentally retarded or grew up beneath a rock, both assessments having been proven false by the observations that I was actually rather intelligent when it came to things like mathematics and engineering, and relatively normal, my own unique personality quirks falling well within the status quo. It was also assumed that, whoever I was before running into Cinder, I wasn't anybody terribly important, as a search of open missing persons cases and newspaper articles from the last thirty years (performed by information brokers in all four Kingdoms and paid for by Cinder) hadn't found anything that could possibly be me._

* * *

"I guess not..."

One did not need to listen very closely to hear the reluctance in her tone.

* * *

It had taken them most of the day, having had to flash (forged) Hunter-In-Training licenses (Lee's identifying him as 'Caerulean Vao') literally _everywhere_ they went after picking up their weapons, but, finally, they were approaching The Bear's Den. A fact that the doorman did not seem to be very enthused about, if one were to judge by the sudden case of the shakes he had developed upon seeing the duo approaching.

"Hey, Scorpion?" Lee asked with a shit eating grin. "Just a guess, but it looks like this guy knows who we are."

"You know what, Cloud? I think you may be right." After returning from their mission to assassinate Summer Rose, Neo had remembered that Lee had dubbed her 'Soft Serve' over the radio; she did not take kindly to that. Thus, after a telepathic rant and a purely physical beatdown that still hurt his pride whenever he happened to recall it, they had come up with some new callsigns. Cinder remained 'Queen,' Neo's new callsign was 'Iris,' Mercury became 'Strider,' Emerald became 'Scorpion,' and Lee became 'Cloud.'

"Scorp, I've told you before: I'm always right. But, just to prove it, why don't we go check?"

"Well, we do need to go in at some point, so sure, why not?"

The doorman, a large, rough looking fellow wearing the iconic Axe Gang suit and red shades, began to visibly sweat as the two approached, prompting them both to grin.

"Good evening, my man!" Lee spoke as he wrapped an arm around the doorman. "How are you on this most _lovely_ of evenings?"

The doorman gulped. "I- I- I'm doing alr-right, I guess. Uh-um, h-how are you?"

"Wonderful!" Lee exclaimed as he released the poor mook, "Thank you for asking! Now, my good man, would you care to settle a bet for the lady and I?"

"O-okayyyyyyy?"

"Thanks chap! You're alright, you know that? Anyway, here's the 411: I think you know exactly who we are. _Up-bup-bup!_ Don't say anything, I'm talking, and I don't like being interrupted. And judging by how close you are to pissing yourself, you've seen exactly what happens when you end up on my bad side; you were here that night, weren't you? Of course you were. So why don't you do your best to stay on my good side, radio Junior, and let him know we're here? We'll be waiting at the bar."

Lee ignored the stuttered affirmative as he brushed past and through the doors, Emerald not far behind. A smirk formed on Lee's face as they progressed, every mook on the security detail having similar reactions to the one at the door (though not quite as visibly). And it wasn't just the security detail which gave them a wide berth; while it was not an uncommon sight to see exotically armed teens and young adults entering The Bear's Den, it was uncommon for them to be permitted to keep their weapons on them past the door. Consider that both Lee and Emerald were both visibly armed, and carrying a pair of cases that obviously carried even more weapons? It was hardly surprising that a natural bubble surrounded them at the bar.

"Not bad, Cloud. For a minute there, I actually _believed_ that act."

"Hey, just because I'm the nice one doesn't mean that I can't also be scary!" Lee exclaimed as he set his second drink, a double whiskey soda on the rocks, back on the counter. "I wasn't kidding when I said that guy was close to pissing himself."

"Point," Emerald conceded after taking a sip of her mint mojito, "but I wouldn't advise trying that act on Junior; he'll see right through you."

"Wanna bet?"

"Not while we're on a mission, no."

"You're no fun."

"I indulged you earlier."

"And won yourself a free lunch out of it!"

"No means no, L- Cloud."

Lee frowned. "That's twice, now, Scorp. You're lucky you caught yourself... And that The Queen wasn't here."

"You said yourself that I caught it in time. It won't happen again."

"Yeah, we wouldn't want _that_ to be what senpai finally notices you for."

Emerald choked on her mojito. "...Fuck you!"

"I didn't take you for the type to go for that on the first date, but I'm game if you are."

" _Ugh_... There's just _no_ winning with you, is there?"

"You bet your pretty little ass there isn't!"

"Ugh..."

Lee grinned at her defeated groan, and stretched an arm out to wrap around her shoulders, affectionately tugging her in for a quick side hug. He was about to say something... Mushy, but was interrupted for the second time that day by the sound of a throat being cleared. Without letting go of Emerald, who by this point was digging her elbow rather violently into his ribs, Lee craned his neck so that he was looking over her head and his own shoulder, where he saw Hei "Junior" Xiong glaring at them, with his arms crossed. He was dressed the same way Lee remembered from that night not quite a couple of months ago, but there was one new addition that Lee could discern: he was wearing gloves now.

"Hey there, Junior! How's the hand?"

The pressure on his ribs let up for a moment, replaced with a silent shaking as Emerald suppressed a giggle. Junior himself did not take too kindly to the jibe, a reminder of his burnt hand. The man growled, but Lee was unfazed. Finally letting go of Emerald, he swiveled his stool so that he was facing him, and Emerald did the same. In unison, the both of them leaned back against the bar, nonchalant expressions on their face. Though, Lee's became slightly annoyed when he noticed Junior's eyes, just barely visible behind dark lenses, wandering towards Emerald's rather noticeable... Assets.

It was Emerald who spoke this time. "Careful, big guy. Do remember what happened the last time you tried to get hands on with one of your guests."

"It would be a _snap_ to send you to meet your brother, and quite _shocking_ if you happened to see your father along the way."

Junior was visibly quivering with rage by this point... But, a moment and a deep breath later, he seemed to decide against taking violent action, wisely realizing that even if he did win (which, in all honesty, was about a fifty-fifty proposition), he would most definitely lose when Cinder came back with Mercury and Neo. And when it came to facing off with Cinder, losing was almost always fatal.

"I assume you're here for the dossier, Scarface."

"Well, Teddy Bear," Lee quipped as he stood, pressing forward until he was squared up with the taller man, "I'm not just here to terrorize you and your men, as amusing as it's been."

"And I didn't come to be ogled by mooks with no self control." Emerald followed, crossing her arms over her chest as she took her place just behind and to the left of Lee. "My eyes are up here, Junior."

Grumbling, Junior took a step back as he motioned to a mook, who quickly stepped forward with a manilla envelope, presumably carrying the documents that they had come for. With shaky hands, he passed the envelope to Lee, who passed it to Emerald, who used the blade on one of her revolver-sickles to slit it open before passing it back to Lee.

"Thanks, Scorp."

"Don't mention it."

Curiously, Lee reached into the slit and removed the contents, which turned out to be a manilla folder labeled 'Adam Taurus.'

"Huh. Haven't heard of this guy before."

"You wouldn't have; the man has been careful to stay out of the news ever since his faction was formed."

"About two and a half years ago, right? If he's managed to keep his name out of the news for that long, then how did you hear about him?"

Junior just raised a brow.

"Right, trade secret, forget I asked. Let's see what we've got here..." Lee mused aloud as he began to skim the contents of the folder. Lee was no expert, never having seen a dossier on anyone before, but it seemed to line up with what he expected. The front page was a cover sheet, containing some back ground and a summary of the most important things about him, and to which a photograph of the man was clipped. He appeared to be a bull Faunas, sporting horns that just barely peeked out of his red hair... But that wasn't the only distinctive feature to him. Lee couldn't quite place how, but his Grimm Mask also appeared to be unique somehow... After that, more documents and photos, presumably all related to Adam Taurus. A low whistle escaped his lips before he passed the file to Emerald.

"For someone who is supposedly an unknown, this is quite a bit of information. Color me impressed... And I'm sure the boss will appreciate it as well."

Junior shrugged, smugly nonchalant. "That's everything I had on him. Given enough time, I might have been able to find out a little bit more, but that should cover just about everything important."

"For now, I'll take your word for it."

"It's not as if we don't know where to find you if our boss disagrees," Emerald chimed in, tone friendly, but connotations... Threatening. Something that Junior did not miss, his whole demeanor visibly tightening.

"Is there anything _else_ I can do for you two, or will you be leaving now?"

The world around Lee slowed as he raised his left brow, and his eyes glowed as he tilted his head down a fraction, affixing Junior with a decidedly flat gaze. There wasn't anything that they really needed, but he hadn't missed the way Junior had managed to make "will you be leaving now" sound like "now get the fuck out," which had left Lee decidedly unimpressed. So in order to add insult to injury, he could 'request' a VIP table and an open bar tab for himself and Emerald; he _was_ supposed to be on a date. But he was also pretty sure that Emerald would attempt to rip him a new one for that, seeing as Cinder wanted them back at a decent time; it may have only been about seven o'clock in the evening, but they also had to get all the way back home, and using public ground transportation no less. So, deciding to let it slide, Lee caused the light in his eyes to recede, allowing a different sort of glint to come to them as the world around him resumed its normal flow.

"Nah, just try to get your men to grow some backbone. I swear, the lot of them look like they could faint at any moment."

And with that parting shot, Lee picked up his two cases and left, ignoring Junior's visible symptoms of rage other than to step around him on the way out.

 _Perhaps_ he had overdone things a little.

* * *

"So, is this the part where you kiss me goodnight?"

Lee rolled his eyes and smirked, even as he drew to a stop just outside of their apartment and turned to face her.

"Normally, yes." Lee snarked as he gently slipped his arms around her waist, the soft skin of her bare midriff feeling like silk in his hands. Once again, he found himself drawing a comparison between her skin and milk chocolate, the minty scent of her shampoo mixing with the chocolatey aroma of her perfume only strengthening the similarity. And when his eyes roamed over her parted lips, he decided that he intended to sample some. Grinning with hooded eyes, Lee leaned down to do just that.

He did not expect her to attack his own like a starving dog. But of course that didn't stop him from obliging her. She might have been new to the whole thing, but, well, it wasn't as if she was bad at it. Awkward, for sure, but that's what Lee was for; he'd help her figure it out. Though, after the second near miss in under a second, he quickly decided that he'd better stop her before she accidentally bit him.

A sharp pain and the sudden taste of copper told Lee that he wasn't quick enough.

"Mmmph!"

Emerald released his lip, and Lee abruptly pulled away, wearing a pained grimace as he ran his tongue over the wound. Emerald had broken the skin on both sides, and while they were not large wounds, facial wounds, including those on the mouth, tend to bleed quite a bit more than one would otherwise expect.

Emerald was busy laughing her head off.

"You bitch..."

Lee tried to say. But with both his hand and his tongue being firmly pressed against the wounds to stem the bleeding, it sounded more like "yew bith..."

Emerald snickered some more. Amusement evident in her tone, she asked: "Want me to kiss it better?"

The sad part was, Lee kind of did. But he wasn't about to let her. Not after that stunt.

"Thup no! Giddavay thummee cwazy woomin..." Lee grumbled as he turned away (Emerald still snickering uncontrollably), and finally opened the door to their apartment before stooping to pick up his weapon's case.

Emerald tried to stop him, but a glare and a glance at the blood leaking from between his fingers changed her mind, allowing Lee to move through the door uncontested.

Ten minutes later, a scowling Lee was sitting on a closed toilet while a confused Neo applied diluted hydrogen peroxide via cotton swab to his cut lip.

 _"Okay, now that you aren't bleeding everywhere, what the heck happened?"_

Lee pouted as best as he could with his lip being pinched in one of Neo's hands. "Emerald did."

 _"What, did she punch you while your Aura was down or something?"_

"Let's just say she's a _really_ bad kisser."

.

..

...

For a few moments, Lee was fascinated by the conflicting motions warring over Neo's visage. On the one hand, he could see that she was struggling not to laugh. But at the same time, the fiery rage that flared to life in her eyes was terrifyingly enthralling. Which was probably why it took him a second to realize the rage had won when she had let go of his lip, dropped the cotton swab, and teleported out of the restroom with a fwoosh, leaving behind an afterimage which shattered into a million pieces as Lee burst through it, having shot to his feet.

He wasn't quick enough to prevent the ensuing pandemonium. By the time he had made it out the door, the sounds of a violent scuffle could already be heard coming from the kitchen.

" _Bwah!_ For Dust's sake, Neo, don't _do_ that! Wait a second, why are y- Ahhh! _Hey!_ What gives?!" The sound of Emerald's screams were accompanied by various crashes and clangs.

Lee made it to the kitchen just in time for Emerald to make her escape, slipping through the kitchen door and putting Lee in between her and Neo. It didn't do her much good, since Neo decided to simply teleport past him, allowing her afterimage to run into his outstretched arms.

"Shtak!"

"Ahhh!"

Lee whirled and charged, having seen enough in the brief glimpse he got from Neo's afterimage: she was dual wielding a frying pan and a kitchen knife; she was out for blood.

 ** _Thunk._**

"Ow! Fuck, that hurt! Merc! Lee! A little help please!"

"The sooner you stop running, the sooner it'll be over! Now hold still, dammit, this will only hurt a lot!"

Lee's eyes widened in shock. While it was not unheard of for Neo to use her voice these days, it was still an uncommon enough occurrence that he would classify it as rare. However, he'd be lying if he claimed not to have noticed that he was usually either the sole audience or the primary cause for her to use her voice. It was pretty obvious, actually, as well as flattering. But that didn't mean he was about to let her murder his girlfrie- well, he didn't want to assume just because they'd gone on a date and kissed a couple of times- Emerald, just because she bit him.

Then again, Lee pondered as he settled against a wall to watch, he was still rather angry about that himself. While it hadn't been explicitly stated, it was implicit that when two people kiss, there's at least some measure of trust involved. After all, you have to be able to trust that your partner isn't going to try to harm or otherwise take advantage of you. In a healthy relationship, violations of that trust should occur anyway... But they should also be relatively minor. A nip here or a tickle ambush there is perfectly okay, and can be entertaining for both people involved. But biting so hard that medical treatment was legitimately required was so far beyond what was considered acceptable that it gave rise to serious doubt in Lee's mind, especially when combined with Emerald's use of Semblance to knock him out earlier in the day. Granted, one could make the argument that Lee shouldn't have been hurt anywhere near as badly as he was in either incident, seeing as his Aura was unlocked, and Lee himself would agree that the traffic light incident was his own damn fault. But he'd trusted Emerald enough to relax his barriers, and promptly been rewarded with a near maiming; Lee would have lost a chunk of his lip if he had obeyed his instinct to pull away. And while it was true that prostheses and cybernetics on Remnant could do a lot, synthetic skin was, to Lee's knowledge, still beyond current medical technology, so he would have been permanently defaced. Sometime during the period in which he'd been watching the chaos unfurl, he'd caught Emerald claim that it was an accident, but neither he nor Neo thought that she seemed very apologetic. So Lee was perfectly content to watch Neo, who had finally cornered Emerald in the... corner, go to town with the frying pan (Mercury, summoned by Emerald's desperate pleas for help, had nearly been skewered to the wall by Neo's thrown kitchen knife before he wisely chose to stay out of it). Or at least, he would have been had he not still had two open holes on his outer lip.

With a sigh, Lee made the right decision.

"Neo, I appreciate the outrage on my behalf, but I still need help stitching my face up."

Thus it was that when Cinder finally made her entrance, she found Lee and Neo sitting at the kitchen table, mid operation, while a thoroughly chastised Emerald was sprawled out on the couch in the living room, wincing as Mercury applied icepacks to various bruises.

All four greeted her as best they could under the circumstances.

"Do I even want to know?"

It was Mercury who spoke up. "Probably not."

"Do I _need_ to know?"

"...Probably."

.

..

...

"Caerulean, Neopolitan, as soon as you have finished in there, please bring yourselves and five glasses of Merlot to the living room. I suspect we are _all_ going to want one by the time we've heard this story through."

* * *

 _Cinder was right, of course. By the end of the night, we had all had at least **two** glasses of wine. Well, all of us sans Mercury, but the man could hardly be blamed for never touching a drop of alcohol considering his upbringing. But that's beside the point. By the end of the night, the rest of us were drunk, and while Emerald **had** finally apologized for nearly mutilating my lip, I was still upset with her. Additionally, she and Neo were both still furious with each other. Tensions were running high... But at least we had our next target. The only problem was that we couldn't yet act. When I had skimmed Adam Taurus's dossier, I had failed to notice that he wasn't in charge of the White Fang yet. Not the whole organization, at least. He himself merely controlled the largest cell based near Mistral. Admittedly, that last piece of information had me questioning just how Junior had even gotten this much information in just a few weeks, but I knew that unless he was somehow capable of fooling Cinder, which I highly doubted, it had to be accurate information, regardless of how it was obtained. So, until Taurus could bring the rest of the White Fang under his banner, all we could do was continue to plan... And with no further reason to remain in Vale, it was finally time to leave._

 _We were going to Mistral._

* * *

 _ **So... I don't care what Roosterteeth calls the ape Grimm from the character short, I'm calling them like I see 'em: Grimms out for Harambe! xD**_


	26. Chapter 21: Revenant, Part 1

**Volume 1, Chapter 21**

 **Revenant**

 **Part 1**

 _So, remember after our last session that I said tensions were running high in our group? Yeah, that was only the beginning of it. You see, Emerald and I made up fairly quickly, helped by the fact that we we still wanted to make_ **out** , _but she and Neo had gone into a miniature cold war, and a month later, it showed no sign of slowing down, much to the chagrin of myself and Mercury. But, seeing as they kept their war mostly subtle, Cinder chose not to do anything about it. I was of the opinion that was extremely counterproductive, but, apparently, both of them had softened up a bit ever since I joined the crew, so she was perfectly happy to watch them reawaken their more vicious tendencies, even at the temporary cost of team cohesion. Again, I absolutely disagreed with that, but Cinder wasn't about to put her foot down, and it was far too late for me to prevent it from happening in the first place, so all I could really do at this point was attempt to mediate. Which, as you might imagine, was a bit of a tall order when the underlying cause for their war basically boiled down to wanting more of my attention than the other._

 _ **Women...**_

 _I should clarify here: despite what this must look like by now, it was not **quite** a love triangle; Neo, despite some circumstantial evidence to the contrary, did **not** have a romantic interest in me at the time (or so she maintains), while Emerald, despite the progression of our relationship thus far resembling the plot of a trashy romance novel, made no secret of her desire for Cinder's affection. No, this was really more of a battle between one girl who was reluctant to give up any amount of time with her best friend, and one whose definition of "friends with benefits" more closely resembled what most, myself included, would most definitely call "casually dating." But, I'm getting ahead of myself here._

 _I ended our last session by mentioning that our group was moving back to Mistral, right? Well, when I said 'Mistral,' I wasn't lying... If we're talking about The **Kingdom** of Mistral. But it wasn't the capital that we were headed to. Oh no. It's true that the liars, thieves, and murderers of Remnant treat the Kingdom of Mistral as their home base, but everyone who knows anything about the Kingdom knows that most of the truly dangerous, my group included, are actually found in and around the cities of Windpath and Kuchinashi. And it was in the underworld of Kuchinashi that I would find myself eking out a reputation of my own, the best way that I knew how..._

* * *

 **M: +7 D: +8**

"You want to fight in the pits."

The impish grin fit the imp's impish personality, but the deadpan tone in which that statement had been delivered did not, and it caused Lee to raise an eyebrow at the pint-sized girl, seated directly across from him at the dining room table.

"What, did you think you were the only one who got excited by the prospect of a good fight? Come on, Neo, I thought you knew me better than that."

The girl rolled her eyes.

"Dude, you've been fighting a little over 7 months. While I'll admit that you're not half bad, I highly doubt you're ready to tangle with some of the most dangerous criminals on Remnant."

"Present company excluded?"

"Yes, considering present company has never tried to kill you."

Lee scoffed. "Fine, I'll give you that one. But how about Markos Malachite? Beiji and Da Hui Xiong? Winter Schnee? Ronald Springfield? Summer Rose?" Lee winced as he mentioned the last three names on that list, the last one in particular causing him to absentmindedly trace the scar over eye, but he continued on. "I'm pretty sure that all of them tried to kill me, yet most of them are pushing up daisies now."

Neo's grin disappeared. "You came pretty close a couple of months ago."

"Yeah, against Summer freaking Rose! She would have had us _all_ pushing daisies if I hadn't managed to get the better of the Schnee bitch."

"Debatable, but I guess you have a point there.

"Yeah: I highly doubt I'll run into anything nearly as dangerous as Summer Rose in the pits."

"Very well then."

Both halves of the heterochromatic duo jumped in surprise, not having noticed Cinder until just then. The woman in question was wearing her usual outfit, along with a coy grin; Lee braced himself.

"Cinder! How long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough." The woman told him, glee evident in her tone. "This should actually work out quite well. Lee, you were brought aboard on the pretense that you would be a mercenary, but you have since become aware of our true aim. I'm sure that you've realized that we are playing a long game."

"Kind of hard _not_ to, Cinder."

"Quite..." Cinder noted with a deadpan expression, though the amusement was still evident in her bearing. "While I'm certain that I've provided more than enough funds and training for you to be effective in your role, both as a mercenary and as part of this team, it would hardly be fair of me to deny you the chance to make use of that while not working towards our goal."

Tentatively, Lee began to allow a genuine smile to form. "Wow. Thanks, Cinder!"

"You're quite welcome, Lee. Besides, not only will this provide an excellent opportunity for you to earn some money of your own, but you'll also earn some valuable combat experience against people other than us. Which, despite your previous successes, you are sorely in need of." Lee rolled his eyes; while Cinder wasn't _wrong_ , it wasn't as if he was a total amateur, which both of them had admitted. However, when Lee happened to glance at Neo, he froze; the girl looked like a dog who had just been told she was going to the park.

Lee decided his sanity would remain intact longer if he didn't ask. Instead, he decided to backtrack a bit and ask a question that had come up during Cinder's speech. "Umm... That's great and all, but how exactly is me becoming a pit fighter supposed to lead to becoming a mercenary?"

That in turn caused both women to stare at him with surprised expressions. "...What?"

Cinder spoke. "Most new mercenaries in Mistral get hired right out of the pits; it's the most convenient way for Aura capable individuals to display their skills to potential clients without doing anything explicitly illegal. But if that wasn't your motivation for fighting in the pits, then what was?"

Lee scratched the back of his neck, sheepishly. "I just wanted to fight someone other than you four..."

He laughed as both women acquainted their palms with their faces.

* * *

 **Neo**

"Have I ever told you that you're an idiot?" There was real exasperation present in the fun sized woman's tone, stemming from the conversation they had just left. Seriously! All that just so Lee could find himself a good fight? Sure, his idea wasn't technically a _bad_ one, but couldn't he have just asked them to mix things up a bit?

Lee chuckled. "At least twice a day, short stack!"

The bastard's smug tone made her want to attack his face... With her mouth? What the..? "Ugh... Idiot..."

"And now you've filled today's quota!"

A quick pivot caused Neo's punch, aimed at a certain spot between his hips, to land on his hip instead. Lee winced, serving as evidence of the girl's strength being disproportionate to her stature, yet still he laughed; Neo was flicking her hand out to her side, a grimace on her face.

"And _I'm_ the idiot?"

Neo glared... But was all too aware of the heat in her face, resultant not from the embarrassment of accidentally hurting herself, but rather that of that single out of place thought. Who was she, Emerald? _Seriously!_ Just because the guy was her best friend and... _passably attractive_ did _not_ mean she wanted to jump his bones the way that _bitch_ seemed to want to! And the worst part of it all?

The smug bastard _knew_ what was going on in her head! And he was flaunting it with that _infuriatingly_ smug smirk, and so _what_ if it also happened to make her a little weak at the knees? _She_ was supposed to be the infuriatingly smug one, dammit!

Neo's fuming was interrupted when she was suddenly hoisted into the air by her waist, catching her by surprise so effectively that she forgot to protest, though she did wonder why Lee was humming something that sounded like "Nah, so when ya!" **(AN: Yes, Lee just did what you think he did xD)** Still, just when she was recovering from the shock of being manhandled so suddenly, he shifted her around until she was seated on his shoulders, with Lee holding onto her calves.

Neo sighed. _"Lee?"_ She hedged, unconsciously switching to speech via telepathy.

"Neo." The buffoon was _still_ laughing at her!

Neo did her best to remain calm. _"Why am I on your shoulders?"_

Of course, Lee wasn't about to let that be an easy task. "That would be because I put you there, short stack." To Lee's credit, a quick stumble and a laugh were the only indications he gave that he'd even felt Neo bonk her fist against the top of his head for making that _smartass_ remark. Seriously, it was moments like these that made her wonder why she put up with hi-

"You also tend to not watch where you're going when you get flustered. You would have smacked your forehead against the corner of the bar, and we _just_ got that replaced from the last time you did that."

Neo could almost see the steam billowing out of her pores at the thought of nearly doing something so embarrassing... Again. Still, she did her best to keep it out of her voice as she semi-sarcastically retorted: _"Oh, so I almost pulled a Lee."_

The bastard wasn't even fazed, merely ducking through the backdoor with perfectly measured strides. "Yup, except it would have been entirely your own fault, so you're welcome."

Neo was absolutely _certain_ that her face resembled a cherry at that point. _"Please just put me down..."_

"What, not enjoying the view?" The lug quipped. Reluctantly, Neo forced herself to really _look_ at her surroundings... And quickly found that she did indeed enjoy the change in perspective; being only 47 inches (145 cm) tall, and this with her high-heeled boots, suddenly being placed on the shoulders of her not-quite six foot (1.81m) friend had suddenly doubled her usual height from the ground, so even though it was only the grounds of Cinder's home that she was seeing, it was still nice.

She couldn't find it within her to stay embarrassed, and thus found herself relaxing into the grin she could feel emerging. _"On second thought, this is actually kind of nice. Onwards, noble steed!"_

Lee laughed, and Neo did her best to ignore that she absolutely loved the feelings that sound inspired, despite the way that he could needle her (such as he had been doing for the past several minutes!) without actually upsetting her... Most of the time, anyway. He had been absolutely _merciless_ that one time he'd caught her trying to practice with a battle axe, but in hindsight she could see how it would have seemed pretty funny. Of course, she'd never _tell_ him that; she'd seen how well that worked out for Emerald.

Speaking of, Neo had to put in a conscious effort not to glower at the thief (who she could see doing the same) when she and Mercury came into view, approaching their destination from the other side. Cinder's estate, in addition to hosting a rather large 5-bed 3-bath house, also held a gymnasium with a sparring arena within the grounds. It was nothing fancy, which was sort of odd compared to the house itself, but it allowed them to get the job done, which was perfectly normal when it came to Cinder. Something that Neo was _certain_ that Emerald did on a regular basis, so it was completely baffling that she would choose to have some sort of relationship with Lee. The only explanation that Neo could come up with was that she was simply taking what she could get... Which, so long as Lee understood that too, Neo would be fine with, but what really ground her gears (and teeth) was the way Emerald would so casually inflict real, actual harm on Lee. Making him run into a traffic light at 75 km/hr, for example, or biting his lip so hard that it had required stitches. Her call sign may have been Scorpion, but as far as Neo was concerned, they should have called her _Spider._

"Neo!"

She most certainly did _not_ yelp when she was dragged out of her thoughts, and it most certainly was _not_ just Lee holding onto her legs that kept her from falling off his shoulders, because she most definitely did _not_ jump like a startled cat...

A punch to the top of Lee's head and a glare towards the other two was enough to bring the laughter to a premature halt.

 _"What do you want, asshole?"_

Neo could practically _hear_ Lee, the asshole in question, roll his eyes at her. "I _said:_ would you like to spar with me, short stack? Twenty lien says I hit you at least twice this time!"

"Oh, you're on!"

She took a savage delight in the winces both Emerald and Mercury wore, knowing that Lee would be wearing a similar one; she had spoken out loud, a sure sign that her heart was in what she was saying.

Lee wouldn't stand a chance.

* * *

 **Really short chapter, I know, especially for how long it took me to write it, but this feels like the right spot to split it. As always, please review! I'm dying to know what you thought of Neo this chapter!**

 **-C.S.**

 **Update: The next chapter is mostly done at this point. Ran into some trouble choreographing the spar, but that's done, so now it's just a matter of wrapping the scene up. I'm thinking January 9th at the latest. Also, note the title change: it's a hint! ;)**


	27. Chapter 22: Revenant, Part 2

**Volume 1, Chapter 22**

 **Revenant**

 **Part 2**

 _Lee_

"You ready for this, Lee? You're about to be twenty lien poorer!"

Lee grinned from his side of the arena, nervously hoping that it would hide the fact that he'd just gulped.

"Don't forget that I don't even have to win, just have to land two hits!"

Of course, two solid hits from Lee while wearing his gauntlets was theoretically enough to put Neo in the red. However, it remained theoretical because, despite many efforts, Lee had failed to ever hit Neo more than once during a match, and that would usually end up being the signal of his own defeat; to date, he'd managed to defeat Neo exactly twice, once because Neo had underestimated his reaction time and taken an elbow straight to the temple (which was a fairly easy mistake to make, seeing as he needed his Semblance to keep up with her once she started to really push herself) and once because Lee had simply bunkered down and waited for her to get tired. The latter strategy was the one Lee intended to use today, if only because it had worked and was the more easily replicable of the two previous examples, but there was one snag; he would be using different weapons today. Hopefully, five and a half weeks of practice had been enough to make him at least as good as he had been with the gauntlets.

It was time to find out. Calmly, Lee reached both hands down towards his hips, where they clasped around a pair of mostly straight handles before he quickly jerked them upwards and released, allowing his weapons to clear their harness. Then, just as they reached eye level, he placed his right foot behind him while his arms shot out and caught the weapons, this time with his fingers landing nestled within the trigger guards. A surge of confidence surged through him after the successful quickdraw, basic as it was, and he settled into his default stance, only slightly modified to account for the fact that he was now holding weapons instead of wearing them: left foot forward at 30 degrees, right foot a shoulder's width and a half at 90 degrees, both bent just enough to be comfortable; hips and shoulders at about 45 degrees, left hand held above the same knee at chin level, right hand held level with his left shoulder with the fist pointing forwards, allowing the weapon in that hand to do the same.

Lee's weapons were... Fairly complicated, to be perfectly honest. In his hands, he was holding a pair of katar/magnums ( _not_ the pair looted from/bequeathed by Summer Rose), which were simple enough, but closer inspection would reveal that not only did they each have an extra trigger and an extra switch, but also a cord coming out of the handgrip that kept them connected to the sheaths. Both the cord and the hand grips had a slight sheen that looked suspiciously similar to the color of his Aura. The sheaths also looked somewhat unusual, being rather boxy, having a couple of small metal Air Dust canisters (about half the length of a standard compressed air tank and similar in appearance) strapped to the outside, and what appeared to be a couple of extra blades and several magazines protruding from the top. But what truly made his weapons complex were the belts and straps forming a full body harness, and the pair of steel grappling darts that were fired out of the sheaths at his waist. He probably looked a little odd thanks to all that, but, having designed it himself with inspiration from an animated show he had once watched and the physics of Remnant allowing him to make such a dangerous device somewhat safe for use (after hours upon hours of headaches during the design process), he was damned proud to be wearing it.

He called it the Cloudburst Regalia.

"Let's get it on!"

"Gladly!" The ice cream themed petite was full of bravado, winking as she drew her parasol with a twirling flourish, spinning it several times around her hand (without the aid of the hook) while she herself did a pirouette, finishing with a sweeping bow before stepping back into a fencer's stance, the tip of her blade extended from the tip of her umbrella.

"Show off..." Lee muttered, but not quietly enough, apparently, for Neo was quick to retort.

"Scrub!"

Lee pouted, eliciting laughter all around; _that_ one had hurt. It was true that, compared to his friends, his skills were pretty basic... But even if he was at the bottom, he was still in the same league. Give him another couple of months with his weapon and he'd be performing tricks of his own...

Lee steadied himself. "Yeah, yeah, just shut up and come at me already."

Neo smiled cutely at him as she began to inch forward. _"Just remember, Lee..."_ Neo stopped, and her grin took on a dark, sadistic gleam. _"You asked for it!"_ Neo lunged as she 'shouted,' and had Lee not known what to listen for, he might have lost right then and there; had Neo still been speaking aloud, Lee never would have caught it. As it was, he was able to just barely hear it when Neo disappeared with a small fwoosh, and reappeared with an equally minute pop.

Lee spun on the spot, allowing her afterimage to shatter against his side while the real one watched her blade glance off of Lee's elbow, right before she was forced to hop back to avoid a knee aimed at her chin, and then duck when Lee turned it into a front kick. Neo didn't let up there, and neither did Lee. Neo attempted to turn her duck into a sweeping low kick, but Lee hopped over it before driving his heel down for a brutal curb stomp.

Lee growled as Neo's after image shattered, but quickly recomposed himself when she didn't immediately attack him. Since he couldn't see her, he spun around once more, and sure enough she was there where she had originally been standing, about ten feet away, studying him with a calculating expression.

 _"Not bad, Lee. I didn't expect you to be able to make me retreat."_

Lee couldn't help but smirk, even as he subtly began to maneuver his thumbs. "So, does that mean you'll fight me seriously now?"

Neo's own expression reverted back to that terrifying grin, with a uniquely sadistic gleam in her eyes. _"Something like that."_

Lee changed his expression to mirror Neo's, excited that he'd gotten her to take him seriously, yet also nervous because of it. Still, his nervousness would prove to be his undoing if he allowed it to make him hesitate, so he decided that it was his turn to press the attack. Both of Lee's middle fingers squeezed their triggers, and a signal was passed along the wire until it reached the boxes at his hips. Once there, signals were passed to the grappling hook mechanisms, causing the spring mechanisms within them to become uncoiled very quickly. This in turn caused the rope darts at his hips to be fired out, aimed not at Neo, but at the wall behind her, where the pitons firmly anchored themselves. But even before they'd stuck in the wall, Lee had jumped straight up before pumping Aura through his weapons, causing the parts green/blue parts of it to actually glow. But, more important than the aesthetic was the function, and that was to activate the Dust canisters strapped to the backs of his thighs, which in turn blew compressed Air through a hose to turn a fan at the small of his back at super high speed, which, combined with a second squeeze of his middle fingers causing the grappling line to start reeling, sent Lee through the air towards Neo at high speed.

Against an opponent who hadn't seen this before, it might have surprised them, but one should remember: Lee's opponent for the day was Neo, and while it was true that she'd never actually gotten to see him using the grappling hooks in combat, she'd still been watching him practice for the last five or six weeks; she was hardly surprised, which was why she was able to dodge Lee's spinning slash with her usual level of aplomb; that is to say, she made it look easy. However, Lee noted with satisfaction that she seemed to be having progressively more difficulty as his assault went on.

After he'd used his grappling hooks to pull himself towards Neo and failed to hit her, he'd launched himself out of his crouch with a rising backslash chained together with a thrust. From there, he'd fallen into a style he was more used to, jabbing at Neo with his left fist (which, of course, meant he was actually attempting to stab her).

Neo, perhaps wishing to test him, or perhaps in surprise at the sudden shift in tactics, chose to lean back from his fist instead of doing what was typical for her by moving to the side, so Lee allowed his fist to retract and attempted a hook-cross-shin kick combo, which, again, Neo chose to dodge rather than parry.

Lee expected that, considering that he was nearly two feet taller and quite a bit stronger than she was, so he continued to press the attack, rapidly jabbing out several times with his lead arm, watching vigilantly as Neo dodged each strike with minimal movement.

As he was extending for the fifth jab, Lee was forced to grimace in anticipation, for while it was true that his Semblance was active and helping him to chain his attacks together without stopping to think, it also had the unfortunate side effect of allowing him to see when he was about to take a hit, without letting him do anything about it. Neo was -highly- aware of this fact, and took advantage of it to wink at him while lunging, sliding the point of her blade across the outside of his arm as she passed. Being that his Aura was still in the green (or at least, it was before that hit landed), Neo's blade didn't manage to pierce his skin, or even his shirt, but he _did_ still feel something just a little bit sharper than a sting.

Lee soldiered on, pivoting on one foot in an attempt to smash a knee into her. And then his boot after she dodged the knee, only to receive a sharp rap to the shin from the shaft of her umbrella. He retaliated by jabbing his lead fist out at her, then attempting a hook with the same hand, only to find his eyes widening in shock as the world seemed to slow to a crawl, even as his surroundings morphed. Gone was the state of the art private training facility, and gone was his opponent. But in her place?

Winter Schnee was in front of him now, against a familiar forest backdrop, and she was in the midst of lunging past a leaping uppercut from Lee... But wasn't Winter Schnee shorter than that? And since when were Lee's arms so small? So pale?

Lee continued to wonder even as he felt... _his_ body? It felt so natural... continue to move of its own accord, an amused smile coming to his lips as he managed to stop mid leap, pivot on the lead foot's toes, and proceed to drive the toes of his other foot into Schnee's stomach. It had been a trap, and Schnee had fallen for it hook, like, and sinker. Just like countless opponents before her.

 _What the..?_

Lee blinked, and he was back in the sparring arena, with a stunned Neo draped across his foot, the expression on her face making it clear that he'd managed to knock the wind out of her. More interestingly, it closely resembled the expression Schnee had made in the scene he'd just witnessed...

Lee mentally shook himself; he'd worry about what had just happened later. For now, it had helped him land a hit on Neo, and he still needed one more to win his bet. He was _not_ going to fail to get it by allowing himself to be distracted.

Lee allowed his foot to drop, and Neo dropped along with it, hitting the ground on one hand and one knee, Lee's hesitation having allowed her to begin to recover already. It was enough so that when Lee attempted to kick her with the other foot, she managed to dodge it before she pushed his foot up, unbalancing him. His back hit the ground a moment later when his other foot was swept out from beneath him.

Lee couldn't help but notice the irony there.

Still, Lee was far from finished, and Neo was still catching her breath, so he had plenty of time to cross his arms and catch the umbrella handle that would have become violently acquainted with his skull. He did flinch, however, when Neo's face appeared just above their locked weapons; her eyes were wide, the corners crinkled, and her teeth bared in a feral grimace. But the most telling feature was that her eyes had switched colors; her right eye had switched from brown to pink, but her left?

Neo's left eye went _white._

 _Okay, I've managed to piss her off. I'd better be careful from here..._

Lee curled his knees in towards his chest, and immediately the umbrella was lifted from his face, allowing Lee to kip up into a ready position. However, he had misjudged Neo's position, and ended up facing the wrong way; he paid for that when the end of Neo's umbrella, blade now sheathed, was thrust into the base of his spine, causing him to stiffen in pain. His hands could move just fine, however, so he was able to deploy his grapple lines once again, escaping a follow up attack he would have otherwise been helpless to avoid by propelling himself towards the wall.

Neo wasn't about to let him escape that easily. A minute pop was the only warning he had before his own momentum drove her umbrella into his gut, driving almost all of the air out of his lungs...

But his momentum was not halted, and both of them were slammed into the wall. Neo, pinned between Lee and the wall, had her umbrella driven point first into Lee's gut, but Lee had driven the blade of his katar into the wall next to her chest.

"That's the match!"

Blue/green eyes met white/pink, before both blinked, restoring the latter to their usual colors while the owners of both sets of relaxed, tension seeping out of their bodies. Bodies that Lee were suddenly hyper-aware of, now noticing that Neo's legs were wrapped around his waist, with one of his arms holding her there while hers were resting on his opposite shoulder and his own hip. And as mentioned before, he had her pressed against the wall, letting him feel _every_ one of her curves, the pair against his chest having drawn his eyes.

 ** _Thump-thump. Thump-thump. Thump-thump._**

Lee wasn't sure if that was his heart or hers... Later on, he would realize it was likely both, considering he felt it on both sides of his chest.

 _"Lee?"_

Lee's eyes immediately shot back up to his partner's face, even as he felt his own skin heating up with a mixture of shame and embarrassment at having been caught eyeing Neo's chest... But those began to be replaced with a different emotion when he noticed that Neo herself seemed to be affected, if the pinkish-red flush her skin had developed, her slightly parted mouth, and her wild eyes were any indication. Add the slight sheen and scent of sweat the both of them had worked up as well as the way they were both struggling for breath and it was almost as if-

"Getting comfortable down there, lover boy?"

"We could go somewhere else and give you two some time alone?"

Emerald's acerbic tone and Mercury's droll one served to break the spell, snapping both teens back into a rational state of mind.

"Um... Give me just a second, my blade is stuck!"

Lee's blade was indeed stuck... But it shouldn't have been difficult to remove. _Wouldn't_ have been difficult to remove if he'd just allow himself to get the proper leverage. But that would require him to either drop Neo...

 _"Just hurry up and get it out so I don't have to listen to her nag at you later."_

Lee's brows rose as Neo wrapped her arms around his chest, which didn't help with his sudden _awareness_ of her, but it did prevent him from having to awkwardly drop her, while allowing him the leverage to pull his weapon out of the wall.

He did his best to ignore the fact that there was disappointment mixed with the relief when his blade slid free with a _shing_ , and he was able to put Neo down.

"So, did I win?" Lee asked with an extra upbeat tone while he turned to walk back towards their friends. Despite the fact that he was obviously distracting from what had just happened, he legitimately did not know whether he'd won or lost; the ending of the fight had been too sudden, too ambiguous. Lee could feel the bruises forming on both his spine and abdomen... But Neo herself seemed to be in just as much discomfort, moving just as stiffly as he was. Though he supposed that could have just bee-

"Nope."

Lee rolled his eyes. "Sorry, Emerald, let me rephrase that; did my Aura break before or after we smashed into the wall?"

"Uh..."

"Well, it went red as soon as you ran into Neo, but both your Auras were depleted upon impact with the wall. In other words, you'd both be dead right now."

Lee nodded gratefully at Mercury, before turning a devious smirk on Neo, whose eyes narrowed warily.

"So under tournament rules, would that have been a win for Neo, or would it have been a draw?"

"Well, considering you initiated that last attack before Neo hit you, your momentum wasn't halted by it, and it was the momentum of the impact the brought Neo down from the orange to completely broken, it would technically be a draw, despite the fact your Aura went red first."

"Which means _you_ owe me twenty lien! Ha!"

Lee had _no_ idea why Neo was grumbling while she fished her wallet out of her pocket; one would think that Lee had stuck his tongue out and blown a raspberry at her. Lee wouldn't do that...

"Real mature, Lee." Lee just scoffed at Emerald's analysis and made to leav-

"Congratulations! You beat up a little girl and took her lunch money!" Only to falter at Mercury's. He wasn't about to leave it at that, though!

"She may be little, but you know for a fact that she's one of the most dangerous people on Remnant! I'm _allowed_ to be proud of the fact that I'm capable of beating her!"

"Yeah!" Lee grinned victoriously at Mercury and Emerald, despite being a little confused that Neo would jump to his defense in this instance... "Being able to beat me is something that someone should be proud of! Of course, Lee hasn't actually beat me yet, so he should probably shut his face before I shut it for him."

Lee promptly proceeded to shut his face, before turning and walking (more like hobbling) out of the arena. He could still hear his friends, though.

"It looked to me as if he would have enjoyed that."

Leave it to Mercury to actually sound as if he was interested in the subject. Lee knew he was interested, alright; Mercury was just interested in the drama that was in the midst of unfurling, and even then only because he had what he thought was a vested interest in the outcome...

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Luckily for Lee, Neo had no intention of allowing that game to be played. He couldn't see her, but after spending every day with the same group of people for more than seven months, it became pretty easy to imagine what what was taking place behind him. Neo, after finishing that statement, would be staring at Mercury with a deceptively calm expression, daring him to challenge her on the issue. Mercury would respond by making an amused expression while crossing his arms behind his head before beginning to hum a tune, and Emerald, if the hairs on the back of his neck were any judge, was frowning intensely at the back of his head. And Lee had a feeling this was going to become the regular state of affairs until something was done about it.

 _Chup my life._

* * *

 _ **So... That happened. As did that... and that. Lol. For those of you who are wondering what took so long to write this chapter, I apologize; I changed Lee's weapons three times before I settled. I originally couldn't decide between a pair of tonfa that could combine into a staff/spear and act as a focus for Dust Magic, or a pair of pointed sai that, while not able to combine, would have done the same thing for his magic while allowing him to still stay somewhat true to his roots in fisticuffs. That second one got scrapped before I released the last chapter, but it did necessitate a rewrite of this entire scene. Which I was almost done with before I was introduced to Attack on Titan, which, in addition to eating up many hours between the anime and all of the English-released mangas, made me fall in love woth the concept of vertical maneuvering gear. I thought: "They have to have an insane reaction time to travel through forests at that speed without crashi- holy shit balls, Lee could do that!" Then I got stumped on how to incorporate a gun onto it when it already has two triggers... But finally said chup it, Aura and mech shifting are things in RWBY, there's no reason I can't have the fan mechanism run on Aura. Lol. So yeah, once again, sorry this one took so long!**_

 _ **So yeah. I know there are a few things in that chapter some of you must be dying to comment on, so please do in a review!**_

 _ **Until next time! (Shooting for no later than 1 February)**_

 _ **-CS**_

 _ **Update: Today's the first of February, and I'm still writing the next chapter. Spent most of the month struggling through some writer's block before I had an epiphany a few days ago, and now I'm about 3500 words in and only about two thirds of the way done with the chapter (from a plot standpoint, that is. Don't hold me to my word on the final word count here ^_^). But fear not, the story is flowing at this point, so if I don't have part three up tonight, it'll definitely be up some time tomorrow!**_

 _ **-CS**_


	28. Chapter 23: Revenant, Part 3

_**And at just over 8000 words, this is the longest one to date; considering that I wrote most of this today, I'm actually pretty freaking impressed with myself right now. My apologies in advance, too, since most of it is italicized; I hate flashbacks/dream sequences, but that's what this chapter is. Again, my apologies, but it was necessary.**_

 _ **This one's for Monty, for ever remaining an inspiration. May he rest in peace.**_

* * *

 **Volume 1, Chapter 23**

 **Revenant**

 **Part 3**

 _"Well, those two were... interesting."_

 _Summer chuckled in amusement. "That's one way to put it, Ice Queen." One of her two partners for this mission, the white and blue garbed Winter Schnee, scoffed at the moniker, but Summer carried on regardless. "Personally, I would have gone with adorable."_

 _"Of course you would..." Winter had a very slight sneer on her face as she said that, but Summer could hardly fault her for that; once upon a time, she might have reacted much the same way upon finding out someone she looked up to didn't act the way she expected them to. So of course Summer intentionally played it up, enjoying the way cracks began to show through Winter's carefully practiced Ice Queen facade. And Summer could tell it was a facade; her old partner from her Beacon Days had been the epitome of The Ice Queen, and Winter Schnee, as much as she may have tried, was no Raven._

 _"They were putting on an act."_

 _Summer turned an interested gaze on the third and final member of her team for this mission, Ronald Springfield, as he returned carrying three pints of locally brewed ale._

 _"Ugh... Do you really expect me to drink this, Spring?"_

 _"Hey, you said yourself that it can be hard to find fine spirits outside the cities. And you can hardly afford to keep a constant stock of your preferred vintages, right?"_

 _Winter glared at him, but Summer was looking between the two curiously, sensing a story; trouble between Papa Schnee and his daughter? If so, Summer would have to keep an eye out for an opportunity to impart some motherly wisdom..._

 _Summer took a swig of her own tankard as she watched the duo bicker._

 _"Well, yes, bu-"_

 _"What's the matter? Your fancy palate revolting at the thought of an ale?"_

 _"You know very well that is not true! You also know that I prefer wine or vodka to this... this... swill!"_

 _"Ah ah ah! You're not allowed to knock it before you try it!"_

 _"Fine, but if I drink this and still dislike it, I will proceed to complain as much as I want!"_

 _"Fair enough. So, what're you waiting for?"_

 _Summer watched with the beginnings of a smirk as Winter, done in by peer pressure, raised her mug to her lips, used her other hand to pinch her nose shut. Summer laughed outright when Winter proceeded to tilt her head back and pour her ale down the hatch..._

 _"Wow. Look at her go... Chug! Chug! Chug!"_

 _"Chug!" Summer cheered as Winter proceeded to do just that, managing to down her entire mug in one go. Not very smoothly, though, if the way she was coughing and gagging was any indication._

 _"Oh, come on," Spring rolled his eyes at her. "It can't have been that bad. You did manage to finish it."_

 _"And I hated every moment." Winter declared with a disdainful tilt of the head._

 _Summer chuckled. "She did reserve the right to complain."_

 _"Hmmph!"_

 _"Get her the moonshine next time. Hehehe. Moving on. What was that about those kids putting on an act?"_

 _Summer was frowning at Spring, not knowing why he cared enough to bring it up._

 _"They were. It was a decent act, I'll give them that, but the boy looked like he was exaggerating his surprise on recognizing you."_

 _Summer shrugged. "So he's a teenager who likes to make a scene. Probably part of a theatre club."_

 _"The girl was doing... Something with her Aura."_

 _Summer raised a brow, and across from her, she could see Winter doing the same._

 _"'Something?'"_

 _"If I knew what, I'd say so. All I can say is it looked like it was directed at her cousin... Who, by the way, looked nothing like her."_

 _Summer had to agree with him on that latter point. Still, "Their irises were exactly the same shade of blue, and even had the same pattern to them. Which is more than you could say about my two girls; they share a parent, yet you would never even guess they were related just by looking at 'em."_

 _A quick reach into her cloak and Summer produced a picture of her family. And as her eyes settled upon it, the rest of the world seemed to fade from existence, until all that remained was the picture and the scene it depicted._

 _If one were to judge the mood of the scene based solely upon the background, one might assume it ought to be rather dreary or dismal; even beneath the midday sun, the grey forests of Patch could have that effect. But one need only look to the family of five arrayed before it to dispel the false gloom and bring a smile to their face._

 _Standing tall near the center of the frame was a grinning blond man, with facial hair consisting of a soul patch and stubble along his jawline, and his blue eyes were gleaming with pride in the family that surrounded him. He wore brown cargo shorts and a dark brown belt, black shoes, a red bandanna around his left bicep, and a brown leather vest over a tan dress shirt with the right sleeve cut off. But his right arm was not bare; in addition to the black ink tattoo of what could be described as either a heart or a lion, he wore a metal spaulder, a leather vambrace, and a brown, fingerless glove. It was the outfit nearly any picture of him would show, for it was the same one he wore whenever he appeared in his capacity as a Hunter. And when one took into consideration that this man, Taiyang Xiao Long, was an Instructor at Signal Academy and had two children who wished to follow in his footsteps, he rarely appeared in anything else._

 _The equally blonde, lilac eyed teenage girl in front of him was much the same way in that you could rarely catch her wearing an outfit other than the one she was depicted in. She wore a tan vest with gold piping over a yellow low-cut crop top with a black crest that resembled a burning heart, conveniently positioned in front of the girl's own. The vest had puffy cap sleeves with black cuffs, on the sides of which were two small, golden buttons._

 _Moving downwards, it could be seen that she wore a brown belt with a buckle, a pouch, and a small banner-like object. The same burning heart crest was depicted on this banner, except golden in color. She wore black shorts under her belt, which resembled a pleated skirt in the back. Over the short shorts but under the belt was a white, asymmetrical back skirt._

 _Unusual for a girl her age, she wore no discernible jewelry, aside from the orange infinity scarf worn about her neck. She also wore brown knee-high platform boots made of leather, with orange socks of different lengths. Her left leg also had a gray bandanna-like object wrapped around the top of her boot. She wore fingerless black gloves underneath a pair of huge, golden bracelets, which anybody could reasonably assume were weapons of some sort. Considering that the girl, Yang, also happened to be a second year student at Signal Academy, they would be right. And the confident grin she wore would be enough to tell you she knew how to use them._

 _Next to her was her younger sister, Ruby... But as Summer had said, you'd never know they were related judging by appearance alone. Where her sister's blonde hair gleamed like the sun, Ruby's own was black with a red tint, kept trimmed to just below her jawline while her sister's easily reached her waist. Ruby had silver eyes to her sister's lilac. Add in the black and red goth lolita outfit contrasting her sisters brighter colors and the many differences in facial structure and one could assume the sisters were as different as night and day._

 _Nothing could be further from the truth. While it was true that Yang radiated confidence while Ruby could be described as shy and socially awkward **(this narrator prefers the term 'adorkable,')** both girls were outgoing, and the sisterly bond was clear to see in the way the grinning blond had her arm wrapped around the ravenette's shoulders, and the way Ruby nuzzled in to the contact._

 _Cradled in Ruby's arms was the family corgi, Zwei, who was facing the camera with his own mouth open, panting happily in a way that suggested he was intelligent enough to recognize his picture was being taken._

 _Finally, leaning into Taiyang and resting a hand on Yang's shoulder was Summer, resplendent in a white, silver, and red outfit that was clearly the inspiration for Ruby's, and wearing a smile that personified contentment._

 _In a blink, the perspective shifted, and Summer was watching as Zwei escaped Ruby's grasp, somehow managing to take the preteen's cloak with him._

 _"Zwei! Get back here!"_

 _The corgi, ears perked and tail wagging, dodged when Ruby dove after him, causing Ruby to slide face first through the grass; Summer silently thanked Monty that Hunter-grade clothing happened to be stain resistant, even as she silently suppressed a chuckle at Ruby cursing the awkwardness that came along with puberty. Ruby was quickly back on her feet though (Semblance was her Speed, after all), and soon enough she was chasing the dog up, down, and around the the grounds of their family home... Though the fact that she wasn't using her Semblance to immediately catch the dog, as well as the smile on her face, told her parents that she wasn't truly angered by the dog's antics._

 _"Well, aren't you going to go help her?"_

 _Summer didn't even bother trying to hide the amused smirk she had pointed towards the elder of her two daughters after her husband's comment. A smirk that Yang returned so perfectly that Summer almost felt like she was looking into a mirror._

 _"Are you sure it isn't Zwei that needs help?"_

 _Summer rolled her eyes. "Oh, just get over there already, my Little Dragon!" Summer accentuated the order with a ruffling of the blonde's locks, causing the girl to squawk in indignation (because the girl took an absurd level of pride in her hair) despite Summer knowing how much she enjoyed the show of affection. "You know that looks like fun."_

 _"Yeah, yeah, I'm going, I'm going!"_

 _Summer smiled as she watched Yang go, her grin widening as she joined in the chase..._

 _"Is it bad that I wish they could stay like that forever?"_

 _Summer had her mouth opened to retort, but the man who had just taken their photo beat her to the punch._

 _"She may've pushed one of them out, but I'm pretty sure Summer is unique in being able to run pretty much forever."_

 _Summer had the perfect retort for that, of course. "I dunno Qrow, I'd say your sister has me beat there."_

 _Qrow winced. "Ouch. Here I was thinking Tai was the bitter one..."_

 _Taiyang just laughed. "There's a reason the girls tend not to invite their friends over, and it isn't because I like to embarrass them."_

 _Summer grinned. "To be fair, those little shits totally had that coming; I mean, really, who badmouths a little girl, to her sister, in her own home? That's one sure fire way to bring out my Inner Bitch."_

 _Qrow cringed; he didn't even need to hear the emphasis to know that 'Inner Bitch' was capitalized. And while it was true that it could be entertaining to watch Summer's Inner Bitch come out, that only held true so long as it was directed at someone else. But when one remembered that they had all gone to Beacon together, that Summer, as the leader of their team, had felt responsible for the antics of her teammates, and that Qrow and Taiyang had, as typical of the male sex, messed up many times over the years? Yeah, they knew just how terrifying Summer was when her Bitch Mode was activated. The fact that Summer herself referred to it in such terms should tell you all you need to know._

 _Tai, however, was laughing. "Oh, yeah, it was pretty bad; those girls still run off with their tails tucked between their legs whenever Summer picks Ruby up from school." Summer openly laughed at that one; she was firmly of the belief that faunas were people, just as much as humans were, but the one wolf faunas in that pack of girls (Yang had been suspended once for making a related pun) literally tucked her tail between her legs at the sight of Summer. She couldn't resist at least a small chuckle any time she happened to think of it._

 _"They're just lucky that Yang was able to stay calm long enough to restrain herself and go tell Summer." Tai continued, ignoring his wife's evil giggling. "I'm still surprised that Yang didn't try to beat them to within an inch of their lives, on the spot."_

 _Summer beamed with pride, causing Qrow to laugh while Tai sighed. "Hey, she may enjoy violence, but at least I don't actively encourage it. Ruby may be a lost cause on this front, but Yang has certainly picked up a thing or two from my Inner Bitch!"_

 _"Oum have mercy..." Tai groaned, causing Summer to chuckle._

 _Qrow took that as his cue to change the subject._

 _"You know, I wouldn't mind taking this upcoming mission for you, Summer. Give you a chance to spend some time with the kids."_

 _"Ha! As if! I love my girls to death, but I'll be damned if I'm going to pass up a milk run during my last few months on the job. I mean, c'mon; Fairbrook is only about a day out from Vale. I'm surprised my name even came up for this one; they usually pass something like this off to a second-year team from Beacon."_

 _Qrow just shrugged. "If it was a normal infestation, sure. But I read that report too, so I know that you know that the size of the infestation is rather unusual."_

 _Summer raised a brow. "So send two teams, and maybe a Hunter with 3-5 years of post-academy experience to supervise."_

 _Tai responded this time. "Yeah... But you know how The Council gets when prominent Hunters announce that they're retiring. They'll do all they can to squeeze a little bit of extra service from us before they can no longer ask."_

 _"Whatever; it makes no difference to me, so long as my pension check shows up on time each month." And Summer really meant that; once upon a time, she had been of the opinion that she would simply fight until she died, happy to give her life keeping the dark tide of Grimm at bay for however long her life could buy... But then Yang came along, and Ruby a little while after that. Maybe it was selfish of her, but she wanted to ensure that she could provide for them, even put them through university if they chose that path (though, it was seeming increasingly likely that Ruby would follow her parents, uncle, and sister on the path of the Huntsman). She couldn't ensure that if she met an early grave, so she'd opted to retire as soon as she reached the earliest date she was allowed to do so, 15 years to the day from her final day at Beacon. Of course, it had helped that Ozpin had offered her the job of combat instructor..._

 _"Alright then," Qrow conceded. "Just... Be careful, okay? I know it's supposed to be a milk run, but you never know when something unexpected might happen."_

 _Normally, Summer would have made a quip something along the lines of "Aw, I knew you cared!", and Tai, regardless of whether she had or not, would've gone with "Careful, that's my wife you're attempting to woo..." But the uncharacteristic seriousness in Qrow's demeanor demanded the same in return._

 _"I'll be careful, Qrow."_

 _There was a heavy pause after that, in which Summer and Qrow exchanged a look of conviction._

 _Tai took it upon himself to once again change the subject. "Speaking of the unexpected happening, it looks like there's going to be rain."_

* * *

 _Summer looked up through the forest's canopy, frowning at what she could see beyond her raised hand._

 _"Looks like the rain's going to pick up; probably a storm coming. We should try to get back to town before we find ourselves caught in the worst of it."_

 _Summer spared a glance for her companions, Spring and Winter. Both seemed to be slightly fatigued from the fight with the Deathstalker, but otherwise okay; nothing that a couple rounds of ale and a warm fire couldn't cure. "You two good to go?"_

 _A nod and a grunt from Spring, and a terse "Affirmative" from Winter; she could see why they'd remained partnered after graduating from Atlas. The two had good synergy, both on the battlefield and off, and Summer would be sure to include that in her report to The Council. A report that she was actually looking forward to writing, seeing as it would mean she was out of this rain and had had a chance to take a hot bath._

 _"Good, let's get out of here."_

 _They proceeded to do just that, Summer leading the way back to Fairbrook, but they hadn't made it more than a dozen steps before a large hand seized her by the shoulder, forcing her to stop. She turned her head to look over her shoulder to the owner of that hand. "What's wrong?"_

 _"We're about to be ambushed. There's one at our 10:45, in the trees, preparing an offensive spell using Earth Dust. From the shape, I'd say it'll come in the form of bolts."_

 _"Shit," Summer cursed as she felt her body tense. "Is that the only Aura you can sense right now?"_

 _"Yes."_

 _"Meaning that the rest of them are probably going to attack using conven-"_

 _"Buildup behind us, 5:30, ground level. Concentrated into three points. Feels like electricity."_

 _"Fuck. Schnee, defend the front. Springfield, rear guard. I'll take center. Don't let them separate u-"_

 _"Scatter!"_

 _The trio did so; Summer watched as the first arrow, targeting herself, barely flew past her ear, while Springfield's arrow was swatted aside by the blade of his axe. Winter actually reacted quickly enough to slice hers in half, only to give a cry of pain when a trio of bolts slammed into her back, causing her to stumble. Summer spared a glance in that direction to see the offender, the mage Springfield had spotted, on the ground and running towards them, not holding any visible weapons but the lingering glow of active Dust around his hands._

 _"He's mine!" Schnee snarled as she stepped forward to meet this foe. Summer decided to let her handle it for the moment, turning to Spring to find him already engaged with a another foe, this one not carrying any visible weapons either but displaying an impressive grasp of martial arts. What alarmed Summer more, however, was that she hadn't heard him approach, even through the moderately heavy rain._

 _"Where'd he come from?!"_

 _"Directly above us! I only spotted him because he did something with his Aura, probably sound suppression!"_

 _"Shit! I'll take him, you keep an eye o-"_

 _Summer cut herself off when she was forced to raise her katar, deflecting an arrow with the flat of her blade. And then another, and another..._

 _"Nevermind, doesn't look like they're going to let us!"_

 _So things continued in that way for a couple of moments, Summer dodging and blocking a fusillade of arrows from within the tree line, frowning as she was forced a short distance away from her allies._

 _"Spring! Move!"_

 _"Falcon, PAWNCH!"_

 _Summer blinked as the man (judging by the build and voice) called out an attack... That literally made a falcon formed of fire, the beak projected just millimeters in front of his fist and exploding upon impact with Springfield's solar plexus. The assassin paid for it, though, both due to the haft of Springfield's axe catching him across the top of his head, and when Winter very nearly skewered him through the face. Before Summer could attempt to insert herself into that fight, however, she found herself deflecting more arrows, until, suddenly, they stopped coming._

 _"Either they ran out of arrows, decided to reposition, or..." A pop that sounded slightly different than that of the rain hitting the canopy and the small puddles beginning to form was the only warning Summer received, a quick spin and a swing of her arm deflecting a pointed object being jabbed towards her abdomen..._

Okay, what the actual fuck?

 _Summer's assailant appeared to be a goblin wielding an umbrella. An umbrella with a blade protruding from the center of the canopy, but still:_

 _"An umbrella? Seriously?"_

 _The goblin simply grinned at her beneath the balaclava it wore, and Summer could have sworn something about it looked familiar. But there was no time to ponder on that, for she soon found herself under attack from it... Though she (at least, Summer assumed it was a she, based on it's build) soon learned that it was a bad idea to attack Summer Rose without support, as Summer had her on the defensive within five strikes. And even though the goblin was good, Summer found herself having an easy enough time of it that she could keep tabs on the other two fights occurring._

 _Winter, it seemed, had her opponent under control, exchanging magical fire (among other elements) with her opponent in a highly acrobatic, very close ranged wizard's duel; were they fighting in a tournament setting, Summer would have been absolutely riveted. Spring, on the other hand, seemed to have picked up a second opponent, this one using sickle-bladed pistols and fighting near seamlessly with the martial artist._

Also not our mystery archer. This could be a problem; better wrap this up quickly.

 _Returning her undivided attention back to her own fight, Summer quickly found an opportunity when she changed tactics, beginning to add kicks and elbow strikes to her arsenal in addition to her slashes and thrusts. The goblin reacted admirably at first, managing to adapt quickly, but she soon fell for a trap that Summer had lain, attempting to stab her but finding her umbrella trapped when Summer pinned it between her arm and her side. A quick head butt left her opponent briefly dazed, and Summer began to move her opposite arm in for an uppercu-_

 _Summer quickly aborted the attempt, ducking and turning the move into spinning throw in order to dodge the arrow that otherwise would have struck her in the temple. The archer had finally revealed herself, and Summer found herself dancing to the side, in order to both dodge an incoming assault from twin curved swords that had once been a bow, and to put some space between her and her currently downed opponent, preventing her ankles from being grabbed._

 _The archer-turned-swordswoman turned out to be highly adept in close range, able to keep up with Summer as the two began to dance and weave deadly patterns of steel, punctuated by the occasional gunshot. Judging by the woman's skill and her slightly different manner of dress compared to the other four, Summer was willing to wager this was the leader._

 _Again, were she not outnumbered and fighting for her life, she would have been ecstatic; it was rare indeed that someone could keep up with her this well in single combat. But she was all too aware of the stakes here, and thus the only emotions she felt were determination and just a small bit of anger that the site of what was supposed to be an easy mission before she retired could very well end with her death, and at human hands rather than Grimm. Summer wouldn't have been worried if she was only fighting the swordswoman, but the goblin remained a factor, and while the goblin was mostly content to stay out of the swordswoman's way, it didn't stop her from making the occasional attack, which without fail would force Summer to relent in her assault in order to defend herself, keeping the fight relatively even._

 **"Rrraaarrrrrgggggghhhh!"**

 _All three combatants paused to glance towards the source of that yell, and each was alarmed at the current state of affairs; the enemy mage was down, but so was Winter._

 _"Lee!"_

 _Suddenly, Summer realized why the goblin's grin had seemed so familiar. The teenage boy she'd talked to back in Fairbrook had been called Lee, and his companion had been a mute midget named:_

 _"Neo!?"_

 _The short bandit's lips were set in a carefully neutral line, but she had reacted to her name, and that was confirmation enough for Summer; they were the same Lee and Neo that had greeted her back in Fairbrook._

 _Rage coursed through the Huntress' veins; how fucking  dare they! Here she was, risking her life to protect the people of Remnant, yet here this little shit and her friends were, ambushing her after she'd treated her with nothing but kindness?!_

 _With speed and power fueled by her rage, Summer chopped both hands downwards towards the little shit, fully intending to cut her open down the middle while she was distracted, but she reacted at the last second, catching the blow on the shaft of her umbrella and standing her ground for a moment before she pushed back, Summer allowing her to in order to dodge the leader's sudden assault._

 _"Go! I can handle this!"_

 _Summer's Inner Bitch was released._

 _"Oh, you're going to regret those words!"_

 _Recognizing her best chance to quickly take one of her opponents out, Summer went on what she could describe as the fiercest, most carefully coordinated offensive she had ever mustered, no tricks held back in her attempt to end the woman standing in front of her._

 _It was almost enough. Summer had to hand it to the woman: she'd put up an admirable defense, lasting nearly a full two minutes before Summer had managed to disarm her and proceeded to gouge chunks out of her Aura with each succeeding strike. Had they been fighting in an arena configured to show combatant's Auras, Summer was certain this woman would have been in the orange by the end of it. But when she had put the woman on the ground and went for the blow that likely would have broken the woman's Aura, the goblin had returned, teleporting in front of her to turn the assault aside at the last instant. The woman with the pistol sickles appeared beside her a moment later, now carrying only one and swinging it like a kusarigama while taking a stance next to the gob- Neo, while their leader picked herself up behind them._

 _Summer cursed and reloaded her weapons while glancing to where Springfield had been fighting. The man was down in an expanding pool of his own blood, while the martial artist he'd been fighting was hopping on his remaining leg over to where Winter had been fighting the enemy mage._

Shit!

 _As the fighting resumed, Summer recognized that the situation was beginning to look bleak. Both of her allies were down; Springfield was most likely dead, and Winter would soon follow if Summer couldn't intercept the martial artist heading her direction. Were her own situation a little less dire, she would not have thought twice about attempting to save her... But the rational part of Summer's mind recognized that to save Winter would be to sacrifice herself, and then Winter would most likely die anyway. Once upon a time, Summer might have attempted to save her anyway..._

 _But one did not survive nearly fifteen years as a Huntress by choosing the idealistic option; you had to save yourself before you could save others. She hated it, but the simple fact was that her only chance at survival now was to kill her assailants and make it back to Fairbrook, where she would report the attack, and the deaths of Atlas Specialists Winter Schnee and Ronald Springfield._

 _Despite the fight becoming three on one, Summer was giving better than she was giving, and that gave her hope, hope that she would survive to see her husband and daughters again. She had succeeded in dragging the fight out, turning it into a battle of attrition that she was winning_, _but about ten minutes into it, one of the worst possible things that could have happened, did:_

 _"Gem!"_

 _The enemy mage, Lee, had woken up._

 _After a brief shared look with her leader, the kusarigama wielder, now known as Gem, disengaged to heed the call, and Summer did her damnedest to remove one of her two remaining opponents from the fight before Gem returned with Lee. If she could just take out the leader, she would be more than capable of handling the rest. She was so close, managing to successfully swat Neo aside and break through the leader's defenses..._

 _It was not to be, as the chain of a kusarigama halted a stab mere millimeters before it could claim the downed leader's life. Forced to deal with the offending object in order to regain her mobility, and thus, her chance at life, Summer settled for kicking one of the leader's dropped swords to the side while she used her free hand to empty a magazine at Neo, forcing her to turtle behind the canopy of her umbrella, which, to Summer's frustration, was entirely undamaged from both the bullets and her blades from earlier. But she didn't waste time pondering on that, instead dropping the spent katar, transferring her trapped one to her free hand, kicking the other sword, and yanking on the chain that was wrapped around her wrist all in one motion, dragging the girl towards her. The girl was both smart enough and quick enough to fire the last two rounds in the magazine (both of which grazed Summer's Aura) before letting go, and Summer swung it around herself, the first rotation catching the surprised leader across the face with the butt of the pistol just after she'd recovered one of her swords, causing her to fumble it while her Aura finally broke with a small shatter effect. Summer could not capitalize on this quite yet, however, for Neo caught the chain with the hook of her umbrella, and pulled when Summer was slightly too slow to fire the last round in her own weapon's magazine at the wholly unprotected leader, the jerk being just enough to throw her aim off._

 _Summer cursed, and was forced to finally pick her own weapon back up while the others all did the same. Summer was the quickest to have herself sorted out, of course, and she charged, bee lining for the kusarigama wielder, the one who seemed to be the least suited for melee combat out of the group. However, the girl remained calm, retracting the chain back into the gun's mechanism to wield it as a sickle (in the back of her mind, she noted that Ruby would love to see that, and the thought simply filled her with both more rage and more determination). Gem managed to meet Summer's charge, expertly (but barely) deflecting a rapid flurry of blows before being staggered when Summer closed the combo with an extra hard hit, which Gem was forced to catch. Summer was forced to push away, however, spinning to deflect a slice from the leader, whom in turn found herself twisting away from a punch which aimed to gut her. Summer was once again forced to disengage, however, in order to jump over Neo, who had, contrary to her previous tactics, decided to lunge at her legs from the side. Being able to hear the chain of the kusarigama unspooling behind her and seeing the woman in front of her preparing a swing aimed not at Summer, but the space in front of her, Summer was able to deduce that they were attempting to trap her, so she took the only evasive action she could; she jumped, nearly straight up and slightly towards Neo. But her instincts were nagging her as she jumped, so, obeying them, she twisted, and began the motion of a stomp kick..._

 _That impulse saved her life, at least for the moment, as her foot impacted something she couldn't see, and propelled her away. She was able to see when Lee suddenly returned to the visible spectrum, however, his extended, gauntleted fist making clear just what her foot had just hit._

Damn, that hurts!

 _Summer couldn't help but flinch when her foot touched the ground again, and she didn't even dare to hope that her opponents hadn't noticed; they most definitely would have, and one of them, Lee, was still bearing down upon her._

Shit!

 _She had initially planned to take advantage of the brief moment of having all of her opponents in the same spot in order to reload, but she was prevented from doing so by the three rapidly fired bolts of electricity that were fired at her; as it was, Summer was just barely able to dodge all three and get set in time to meet Lee's charge._

 _Thankfully, the way Lee was raising his fists reminded her enough of her husband and her eldest daughter that she responded to it on pure instinct, using a quick 1-2 punch to bring his momentum to a hal-_

 _Twin explosions of pain blossomed in the center of Summer's face, and only her instincts saved her from taking a third, harder strike when she leaned her head just a little to the left, and felt more than saw the elbow that was hovering just above her shoulder._

 _Rage blossomed, and had Lee been any slower in moving, her lunging upper cut might have killed him; at the very least, it would have definitely broken his Aura. As it was, he was still just barely ahead of it, so close that Summer could feel his presence, despite her vision still attempting to correct itself, and the same held true for the entirety of her assault; the felt of his balaclava tickled the skin of her leg as he ducked under a round house kick. The fabric of his shirt, grazed, as he sidestepped her axe kick. And as her vision finally settled back to normal, her mouth twisted into a savage grin as she watched her blade tear through felt, plastic, and flesh when he just barely escaped impaling himself on an uppercut; had her blade punched through the bone rather than scraping along it, the kid would have lost his eye. As it was, it was going to leave an impressive scar, assuming he managed to survive this._

Not something I plan on allowing at this point!

 _But she couldn't press the attack, for two pressing reasons. The first? His friends had finally caught up, and were now engaging her while he removed the ruined goggles from his face and attempted to keep the blood from flowing into his eye. The second, and more alarm inducing? Her nose was bleeding freely, and her opponents were not allowing her the chance to clear it. The only reason she'd been doing as well as she had against them was because her Semblance boosted the efficiency of her body's natural processes; the process that was important here was her aerobic respiration. But an important part of aerobic respiration is, you guessed it, air, so with her nose being blocked and her breathing now relying solely on her mouth, she would be cycling oxygen and carbon dioxide less efficiently, and if the fight dragged out long enough, it would eventually bring her down to more human energy levels, at which point she wouldn't be able to fight as effectively as she had been._

 _In short, Summer was finally on a timer._

* * *

 _Half an hour later, Summer's time ran out. She'd done her best, managing to break through the protective Auras of all four of her opponents over the course of the fight, but in the end, Lee had gambled and surprised her with a stone to the funny bone, causing her to drop the katar she was about to finish Gem with. She had known she was doomed then, trying to fend off four different opponents with only one weapon in hand... She'd panicked while trying to fend off the leader and Neo, not realizing she was being herded towards a waiting Lee until it was too late._

 _Summer felt the moment her ribs were mangled and tore into her lungs, and for the next couple of minutes, pain that was all her conscious mind was capable of even comprehending._

 _But conscious Summer did remain, and when she was able to think again, an excruciating lift of the head revealed that her opponents had let their guard down. More importantly, however, she could see past them to where Winter lay, and it was with a sense of relief that Summer could see that her hands were bound, meaning that she was alive, and the assailants probably intended to keep her that way._

Heh. These guys probably intend to ransom her to the Schnee Dust Corporation. But that means I just have to kill them and hold out long enough for Winter to get help. I can do that... Maybe.

 _Every movement inciting a new wave of agony, Summer reached to her belt, quickly but clumsily finding a magazine for her weapon._

Focus, Summer! If you want to see Ruby and Yang again, you have to do this right!

 _Summer clenched her eyes shut, and her daughters' smiling faces were thrust to the front of her mind._

For them.

 _Resolve restored, Summer smoothly rose, instantly being noticed by the one legged martial artist near Winter. She considered shooting him first... But he hadn't killed Winter yet, and seemed to have no intention of doing so, so she instead targeted the one enemy who had caused the most damage, and one of the two whom she had developed a personal grudge towards. Time seemed to slow to a crawl as she sighted in on the upper-left part of his back, and as soon as she had the desired spot lined up, she fired._

 **Blam!**

 _The bastard spun just as the bullet left the chamber, quickly enough for it to hit him in the right shoulder instead of the left, and saving him from taking the .50 caliber slug through the heart. Summer was frustrated by this, but the spray of crimson that erupted from the wound, along with the fact that it knocked him off his feet, caused the rational portion of her mind to move him to the bottom of her priorities list._

 _The kusarigama wielder, Gem, was the next to receive a bullet._

 **Blam!**

 _Summer made a slight adjustment to her aim when she saw that the bullet took the girl in the thigh, rather than in the stomach like she had intended. The bitch had tripped her up multiple times during the brawl, and for that, Summer's Inner Bitch wanted her to experience pain before she passed. A thigh wound, though not as satisfying as a gut wound, would have to suffice for the moment._

 _It was her pragmatic side who chose the next victim, despite the fact that Inner Bitch whole-heartedly agreed._

 **Blam blam blam! Blam!**

 _It took four shots to down the goblin, Neo, because the canopy of her umbrella had been expanded quickly enough to block the first three. So Summer had allowed her aim to shift towards the girl's vulnerable knee, dropping her with the third shot; small as she was, the girl was lucky the leg hadn't been blown clean off. Not that it would matter in the next few moments._

 _That left the leader..._

 **Blam!**

 _Who managed to dodge the first shot..._

 **Blam!**

 _And the second..._

 **Blam!**

 _And the third. Summer gritted her teeth; she only had two left. Making a quick, and somewhat risky decision, she shifted her target..._

 **Blam blam!**

 _And succeeded in knocking the swords right out of the leader's hands. Satisfied for the moment, Summer studiously ignored the agony and charged, managing to swiftly close the distance before she thrusted, failing to skewer her as intended but, successful in leaving a deep gash on the woman's upper arm. And, just as with Lee, she was certain it would scar, given the opportunity._

 _She did her best to put her down, utilizing what her own daughter, whose Semblance was speed, had once described as a dizzying series of kicks. The woman, wholly unprepared for this, was on the ground quickly, still clinging to consciousness but clearly delirious. At the very least, Summer would die with the satisfaction that the woman had been humiliated in front of her subordinates._

 _Immediate threat removed, Summer turned back to where the other three had gone down, and was simultaneously extremely frustrated but utterly unsurprised to find Lee standing before her, left hand clutching his right shoulder and gaping at her in what could only be described as pure horror._

 _Her Inner Bitch practically purred as she started to stalk towards him._

If I only succeed in taking one of you out, it'll be you...

 _That purr became a growl when the kid got his shit together and put his good arm up in a defensive stance._

Okay, so I might have to work for it. You're still going to die.

 _And indeed he would, if her determination could outlast his panic. Compared to earlier, his movements were telegraphed and sloppy, which Summer's rational side had to admit was likely the only reason she hadn't already been put down. But she wasn't complaining; it worked in her favor, allowing her to maneuver until she had her right hand balled up in the neck of his shirt, while her left was drawn back and ready to stab. She was snarling, staring him directly in the eye when the most peculiar thing happened:_

 _His eyes changed colors. Idly, she'd noticed that his eyes both had two different colors, being mostly bright green with equally bright blue sections on the sides, but even if she  hadn't, watching them suddenly turn cobalt would have been startling enough on it's own, and would have caused her to pause. The fact that his face went blank, and his eyes proceeded to glow like a neon light and lock her in place, however, was alarming. And when she felt what little remained of her Aura being drained from her body, and her own silver starting to show in specs amongst the cobalt? That, was terrifying._

 _Death was one thing, but to feel your Aura, literally a manifestation of your soul, being sucked out of your body, while you watched a series of memories that weren't even yours being played out before your eyes? Summer wasn't sure if she even believed in an afterlife, but she staunchly believed that even hell would be better than having her soul be eaten by somebody else!_

 _She nearly cried with relief when expression returned to Lee's face, and she felt herself starting to regain the ability to move her head and neck. Taking full advantage of this, and desperate to escape, Summer yelled as slammed her head into Lee's..._

* * *

And with a startled shout of his own, Lee returned to the land of the waking. Mostly green eyes bored a hole into the ceiling, while a frantic heart pulsed well above what could be considered a healthy rate. Normally, Lee would have noticed that and began forcing himself to calm down by taking deep breaths...

 _'Normal' is about the furthest thing from what I just saw!_

Under _any_ other circumstances, Lee would have simply written it off as a dream, brought about and made more vivid by his guilty conscience. But during the previous day's spar, he'd received a piece of solid evidence which, when taken together with ending of the dream he'd just had, led him to a rather startling conclusion: Lee had _absorbed_ Summer Rose... Or at least, some of her memories, and so _completely_ that it felt like they were his own; he'd felt the rage, the horror, the love, the amusement, the determination, the rain on his skin, the breaking of his ribs... He'd felt it all, in explicit, vivid detail. It certainly explained how he'd perfectly executed that feint against Neo, despite never having even conceptualized such a move before, and it would explain the dream he'd just had... But it still didn't explain _how_ that had happened.

 _Normally, I'd write that off as one of our Semblances... But all accounts reported that Summer's was unlimited energy, and boy did we all wish we had looked into that before fighting her. On the other hand, my own, while still relatively new, is definitely related to either temporal manipulation or enhancement of my nervous system, since all I can do with it so far is change my perception of time. Neither of our Semblances should have been able to do that, alone or together..._

It wasn't until he was treated to the sight of Neo slowly phasing into existence, umbrella gripped tightly, that he realized that his own Semblance was currently active, and almost certainly overclocked if he could actually _see_ Neo in the middle of teleporting. But of course, that itself was enough of a distraction that his heart began to beat a little less frantically, and the world around him suddenly sped up as Neo, satisfied that there was nobody else in the room, turned towards him.

 _"Lee, what's wrong? I heard you shout."_

Lee finally turned his gaze fully towards Neo, and couldn't help but smile; the worry on her face was clear, but the fact she _cared_ enough to worry (not that he ever had reason to doubt) was both heart warming and calming. Still, he wasn't quite sure how to tell Neo about what had apparently happened, or whether he even _should_. And apparently, something in his expression must have clued Neo in to his dilemma, because her own expression softened.

 _"Bad dream? You can talk to me about it, Lee, I can keep a secret."_

Lee _wanted_ to tell her. He knew that telling his best friend would make him feel a little better about it... Normally, he'd have done so without any hesitation. But his life had been _far_ from normal the past seven months, and there was one very important thing to consider whilst deciding whether or not to share the contents of his... memory; did he want Cinder to potentially know about this?

The answer to that was a solid, resounding _no;_ if Cinder knew just what Lee could apparently do, she'd want him to learn how to control it, so that she could harness it during her crusade to take over Remnant. And while Lee was fully on board and willing to be a liar, a thief, a cheater, and a murderer to in order to bring about that reality, he was _not_ willing to potentially interfere with what happened to one's soul after death, for reasons that should be _fairly_ obvious.

Still, Neo had said she'd keep it a secret if she wanted him to, and while it was true that, like him, she was a liar and a thief, a cheater and a murderer, it was also true that over the time they'd known each other, Neo had developed a fierce loyalty towards Lee, and vice-versa; one would willingly die for the other, and carry any secrets with them to the grave. Thus, Lee decided he could tell her.

"Alright, but only if you promise not to tell anyone about this." Lee sat up, draping his legs over the side of his bed. He patted the bed next to him, and the pajama-clad Neo, taking the hint, sat next to him, preparing for a story.

 _"I promise."_

"Alright then. Remember that mission that took us out to Fairbrook?"

 _"That's where we ended up killing those Hunters, right?"_

"Right. Well..."

* * *

 _ **Wow. I really cut this one close, didn't I? Hehe. Still technically the first of February, so I actually made my deadline this time, even if just barely! :D**_

 _ **Anyway, to answer a couple of questions that I'm sure will have come up: THIS is why I had Summer remain alive past when she would have died in canon. Oh, and when Lee was apparently invisible, that was Emerald using her Semblance on Summer to prevent her from seeing him.**_

 ** _As always, please remember to leave a review: I don't make money off of this, so the only reward I get, beyond providing entertainment for my readers, is the FEEDBACK I receive in turn. It's important to me, so PLEASE, after all the time I spend thinking on and writing this story (it's been nearly a year and a half now!), all I ask in return is a review, even if it's just a couple of lines telling me you think the story sucks, is cliche, etc, etc._**

 ** _And now that I'm done shamelessly begging for reviews, until next time (notice that I'm not promising a deadline yet!),_**

 ** _-Cerulean Sorbeltz_**


	29. Chapter 24: Revenant Part 4

**_Special thanks to those of you who reviewed since last time, with a shout out to FateBurn in particular, for leaving reviews on seven different chapters and providing the motivation to stop doubting myself and just get the job done. Reviews are love, reviews are life! :-D_**

* * *

 **Volume 1, Chapter 24:**

 **Revenant**

 **Part 4**

 _"Where... am I?"_

 _Stretching across his entire field of vision, a pure white landscape was the only thing he could see. And it wasn't like in some movies, where there at least discernible seams and differences in shade between the ground and the sky and/or walls, whichever was applicable; were it not for the small blur of tan in the center of his vision which represented his nose, he might have thought that he was experiencing some weird form of blindness. Still, he decided he had better check._

 _Lee tilted his head, and confirmed that he could still see when the rest of his body was where he expected it to be. What was unexpected, however, was his outfit: beneath the belt harness that Cloudburst attached to, he was wearing a designer, monochrome, viridian green dress shirt, and a pair of black slim-straight pants. Lee crouched, then frog hopped straight up, and then alighted with a grin; the pants were flexible, despite appearing to be denim._

 _Over the shirt was a dark, nearly black midnight blue bolero jacket, and while he couldn't see it, he knew that both the left breast and the back would feature a stylized storm cloud, Lee's choice of emblem. He also wore a midnight blue sash around his waist, but his favorite part of the ensemble were the boots on his feet._

 _They were mostly black leather, with some midnight blue accents, reached to just below his knees, and would easily fall into the ADV category. They featured some thin titanium plates covering his shins and metatarsals in addition to the customary steel cap around his toes. But what truly made them stand out, at least in Lee's mind, were the way they fastened; above the zippers running halfway down the backs, they also featured half a dozen small ratcheting straps that, when properly fastened, and combined with the designer fit, would secure a perfect fit, just as with the rest of his clothing._

 _Or so would be the case, once he actually had the outfit made. It had been a series of half completed sketches in Neo's sketch book the last time Lee saw it, but he knew that if Neo could see this, she'd be able to finish in no time._

 _Behind him, there was a small cough, and Lee grinned._

 _"Think of the devil, and she shall appear! What do think? Looks good, riAGH!"_

 _Lee had finally decided to turn around, and proceeded to jump ten feet into the air; standing before him, resplendent in white, silver, and red, was Summer Rose. Though, standing wasn't quite the correct term; hunched would be a better fit, considering that she was currently busting her gut, the sound of her merriment resonating throughout the empty space._

 _"Oum Monty, your face right now!"_

 _Lee scowled as Summer continued to laugh, but he remained wary, dipped into a defensive stance about about 10 feet away from her. He didn't have Cloudburst on him, so a pair of raised hands wer-_

 _Never mind. As soon as he'd thought to wish for it, Cloudburst had appeared, and Lee felt just a little bit calmer; at least he had some measure of control over the situation._

 _Summer noticed. "I see you've figured out some measure of control over this place," she stated with a grin, even as she settled into a stance of her own. Her own weapons, Thorn and Bramble, appeared as she did so, causing Lee to become just a little bit more nervous._

 _"This should be impossible;" Lee frowned. "You severed the link before I could absorb you."_

 _Summer nodded, even as she developed a scowl of her own. "Disregarding that neither of us have ever heard of something like this happening in real life before, that seemed to be the case. But in the couple of months that I've been here, I've had nothing to do but watch some of your old memories. There was a story where you came from: Harry Potter."_

 _Lee blanched. "You're saying I turned myself into a horcrux?!" Through the horror, Lee supposed it could be possible; Aura was said to be the manifestation of the soul, so, having absorbed only part of Summer's, and so recently before her death that it hadn't had a chance to simply be consumed by his own (assuming it worked that way), it stood to reason that the detached fragment could have served as an anchor for Summer's consciousness; it became even more believable when one considered that he had physically been in contact with her at the moment of her death. With distance not being a problem, that killed at least a few different counter arguments... "So you're not just a subconscious manifestation of Summer's memories; you're a ghost, a revenant. Ye gods, what have I done?"_

 _Summer nodded. "It certainly seems that way, though I would like to point out that even if I am just your subconscious manifesting my memories, it really wouldn't make much of a difference in the end; you're stuck with me either way. And before you even say it, I don't think that there's a way to get me a new body, or to otherwise get rid of me. Even if there was, your boss would just try to kill me again, and then I'd have to kill you all."_

 _Lee closed his mouth; Summer had been spot on about what he'd been about to suggest. And so matter of fact about stating that she would kill him if he did. Of course, considering how their last battle had gone, he had absolutely zero doubts as to whether she could. But... He frowned some more, not even noticing that they'd both relaxed from their combat ready poses. "Well, then, why show yourself? What do you want?"_

 _Summer grinned, and in a way that Lee knew that what she said was going to exasperate him; he'd dealt with Neo for long enough that he reacted to that look on an instinctual level. "What, a girl can't haunt the person who killed her?"_

 _Lee's eyes lowered in shame, settling on his suddenly blood soaked hands; though it wasn't the first time he had killed, it was the one he felt the worst about._

 _"And that right there is why I'm not doing everything I can to make your life hell."_

 _Lee's eyes snapped up, incredulous. "Then what the fuck were you trying to accomplish earlier?!" By 'earlier,' Lee meant the last time he'd been asleep, during which he had lived Summer's final moments._

 _Summer just shrugged... But not without letting him see a teeny smile on her face. "It was the best way to get you to accept that I'm not just a manifestation of your guilty conscience; scaring the shit out of you was an added bonus."_

 _Lee wasn't quite sure he believed her motivations, but considering that it had been an effective method to convince him, he had no choice but to let it slide. Besides, there was still one very important question he needed to ask:_

 _"Why even bother? If you've been in here since Fairbrook, then you know what my boss has planned for Remnant, and that I fully intend to support her in it."_

 _Summer's expression hardened, and Lee gulped as she marched straight up to him. However, the conversation thus far seemed to imply that Summer meant him no harm, so he stood his ground, looking down to meet the eyes of the short woman scowling up at him._

 _"No you don't, not fully."_

 _"Oh yeah?" Lee fired back. "How would you know?"_

 _"Besides the fact that I literally live inside your head?" Lee winced at his own stupidity, but continued to stand his ground. "You wouldn't have hesitated at the thought of telling Cinder what really happened at Fairbrook."_

 _Lee turned away from Summer's gaze, defeated; there wasn't really anything he could say to challenge that. "I... Wish that it hadn't come to that."_

 _"And that right there is another piece of evidence for you not being onboard."_

 _"I won't stop just because I don't like some of the things I'll have to do... The things I've done..."_

 _Lee hopped back a step when Summer's grinning visage was suddenly in his face._

 _"I'm pretty sure you will."_

 _"And if I don't?"_

 _"You'll at least do what you can to lessen the collateral damage, such as you attempted while planning the attack on me. While I'm not quite sure whether I'd have preferred to be alive but crippled as opposed to dead, your heart was in the right place... Sort of."_

 _Lee sighed; he wasn't quite sure he agreed with the statement pertaining to his morality, but he couldn't deny that she had his motivations pinned._

 _"...So by helping me, you might help Remnant. But what if I eventually decide to go all in for Cinder? Are you really willing to gamble with those kind of stakes?"_

 _Summer frowned... But it didn't last long. A confident, amused smirk, complete with a raised brow, quickly took over. "I could always go back to haunting you."_

 _Lee remained silent._

 _"Yeah, that's what I thought." She snarked, grinning as she did. However, her expression quickly became serious. "But just in case you still plan to be difficult about this, remember what I told you while I was dying; 'take responsibility for the path you choose to walk.' Is there a possibility that by helping you, I'll just be making your boss's plan that much easier to accomplish, and that much more dangerous for the people who'll be caught up in it? Yes, there is, and that scares me to dea- Well, I'm already dead, but you get the idea. I'm well aware that this is a risk, but I'm choosing to put my faith in you, Caerulean." Summer paused, and Lee tried to thin-_

 _"Now stop being such a whiny little bitch and let me!"_

 _Startled by the outburst, Lee blinked. And then, exasperation, and green-blue eyes rolling. "Well when you put it that way... Fine. It's not like you're giving me much option anyway."_

 _A warm grin, mischievous silvers glinting. "Nope!"_

 _There was only one appropriate response to that: "Ugh..._

 _"So, just how do you plan on helping?"_

 _"Oh, I already have been. Didn't you notice during your spar with your midget friend?"_

 _Glare. "Don't call her that."_

 _Scowl. "Focus."_

 _Lee continued to glare for a moment, but quickly acquiesced with a grumble, recognizing that there were more important things to discuss than his best friend being fun sized. Such as Summer's memory helping him in his spar against Neo._

 _"So... Did you do that on purpose? Or did I somehow access that memory on my own?"_

 _"Well..."_

* * *

 _What, did you think I was going to tell you exactly what was going on, with absolutely no plot element to necessitate it? You should know me well enough by now to know better than that. For now, all I'm going to say is that Summer and I discussed the situation for a while; I'll let you speculate as to whether or not I got an answer to that last question._

 _Regardless of whether or not Summer and myself knew exactly how she had ended up inside my head, just how much she could help, and just how much either of us could control said help, the fact remained that my guilty conscience had suddenly become even guiltier; it's one thing to kill a person, but it's quite a bit worse to steal their soul while you're at it. It was enough to send me back to the third stage of grief (though I did go through brief versions of all five during this particular episode); maybe if I found a way to control that power, I could find a way to reverse it, to exorcize the ghost that was haunting me..._

 _Did I ever succeed? Heh. I'm not telling you. Not yet; gotta keep the story chronological. That was the deal, remember? Otherwise, I might end up telling it half a dozen times and still end up leaving out something important. Patience, my friend; the story will get there eventually. But in the meantime... Well, next time, seeing as we're almost out of time for today. Next time, I'll tell you about the next important event, at least as far as I'm concerned; the Kuchinashi qualifiers for the Mystral Regional Tournament that year..._

* * *

 ** _Once again, thank you for reading this far! The main difficulty I had with this chapter (besides playing so much Overwatch that I'm solidly within the top 1000 Mercy players on PSN, that is) was trying to figure out how to bring some sort of closure to the situation, without outright telling you guys what was going on and thus ruin some potentially dramatic reveals somewhere down the road. I also had to decide what I was going to have Lee and crew do during the next arc, seeing as my next definite, major pre-Beacon plot point, Torchwick, is still nearly a year out in terms of this story's timeline, and while I'm okay with skipping a month or three at a time, or maybe even a full six if I decide to end Volume 1 and then go to Volume 2, I'm not about to skip out on nearly a whole year. So we're looking at either two to three more arcs before we get to Torchwick, or one and a timeskip. Lol. Whichever route I go, I am going to go ahead an promise that I'm not gonna make you guys wait another couple of months for it._**

 ** _Until next time:_**

 ** _CeruleanSorbeltz_**


	30. Interlude 3: Challenger Approaching

**_Once again, thanks to all of you who've reviewed!_**

 ** _Anon1: I'm happy to hear I've kept you hooked! And, funny you should mention Lee x Neo... I think you'll enjoy the next actual chapter. First scene (which is completely written at this point!) in particular ^_^_**

 ** _But you (and everyone else) are gonna have to wait just a little bit longer; I'm making these interludes a tradition, and that means two of them after every two 'episodes' (La Vida Loca, Revenant, etc)._**

 ** _Anyway, here's the first one!_**

 ** _-Cerulean Sorbeltz_**

* * *

 **Interlude 3**

 **Challenger Approaching**

* * *

 **M: +9 D: +0**

The Mistral Regional Tournament, was, to put it lightly, the second biggest sporting event on Remnant, only the biennial Vytal Festival's combat tournament topping it for viewership. But unlike the Vytal Festival, which was restricted to current students of Atlas, Beacon, Haven, and Shade Combat Academies, the Mistral Regional Tournament was open to all challengers, so long as their Auras were unlocked. This, coupled with the substantial prize money offered to the first through third place contestants (in both the actual tournament and the three official Qualifying Tournaments) meant that, if one were skilled enough, they could easily achieve both fame and fortune. This, of course, lent itself to creating a vast field of contestants. This is where the official qualifier tournaments came in handy, separating the creme de la creme from the chaff.

The narrator frowned; that last though had been very uncharitable, and, had she voiced it aloud, her parents and various tutors would have scolded her for being impolite... But, impoliteness aside, it was still true. Hundreds registered to compete each year... In a single elimination tournament with an even 256 competitors (ensuring no byes), a competitor would have to fight through eight separate rounds to make it to and win the championship... And the tournament itself would have 255 individual matches.

The narrator adopted a bemused smile, and revised her example from 256 competitors down to 32, bringing the required number of rounds down to 5, which was the number of rounds in the actual tournament, which held one round per day. In certain other circumstances, five rounds in five days, or even spread out over seven, would be both reasonable and sustainable. Combat, however, tended to be exhausting on Aura, and considering that, aside from Ring Out, Aura Break was pretty much the only lose-condition under tournament rules, it was common for even the winner of a bout to need a full night's rest to restore their Aura to full, or close to it; anybody who has ever participated in a competitive tournament of any sort should know that it's almost guaranteed that they'll have less energy at the beginning of the final round than they would have at the beginning of the first round, with the discrepancy only growing greater as you increase the number of rounds between the first and last. Thus, the Tournament organizers split the tournament up over two weekends, with the first three rounds being held on a Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, with the semi-final, third place, and final rounds being held the following weekend, in that order. Two consecutive weekends was an acceptable time commitment for a tournament fighter when a payout wasn't guaranteed... But three? Five? Maybe even six?

The narrator shuddered in horror. Not only would it be exhausting, but the audience wouldn't find the bouts nearly as exciting. But the field of competitors still had to be reduced to that magic number of 32; thus, the qualifiers. Two each for the cities of Windpath and Kuchinashi, and three for Mistral itself, with the top 4 competitors of each moving on to the main tournament in Mistral. That, of course, only accounted for 28 out of the 32 slots, and would likely drive one to wonder why the organizers didn't simply hold an eighth qualifier. The answer to that: simply making it to the semi-finals during the main tournament automatically qualified a contestant for next year's tournament.

Our narrator smiled; that had been her method for qualifying for this year's tournament. But that hadn't stopped her from choosing to attend Kuchinashi's second qualifier to scout out the potential competition. Her parents hadn't seen the point in doing so, having pointed out that she could simply purchase recordings of the advancee's fights and watch them during rest periods; her time would thus be better spent training. The girl had riposted by pointing out that, while a useful educational tool, recordings didn't evoke quite the same level of excitement that witnessing the bouts in person did; add that her trainers had agreed that personally scouting the competition would allow her to get a better sense of what to expect, and thus retain her title, and her parent's had finally agreed, leading the fourteen-year-old champion to where she was now, watching the third fight of the more interesting fighters she'd observed thus far.

Pyrrha, for it was indeed -the- Pyrrha Nikos, the youngest and reigning champion of thr Mistral Region Combat Tournament, was paying rapt attention to both fighters with a calm smile on her face. The first fighter, a male in his early to mid twenties and possessing average looks (despite his arms and shoulders, completely bare, being much more muscular than average [the champion didn't even flush, having noted this in a purely clinical manner]), was wielding a chain mace and heater shield/revolver to good effect; his mien was calm, his demeanor poised, his form adequate. And unlike many fighters, his fighting style made good use of his Semblance (he created focused explosions upon impact), -without- being wholly reliant upon it. Currently, he held the chain just above the spiked ball, and was turning a slow circle in the exact center of the ring, shield held in a neutral guard and facing the enemy.

Pyrrha would have liked to fight him; he would certainly provide a challenge worthy of the champion's maximum effort. However, it would have to wait until next year, perhaps, for the champion could already see that he was going to lose, before the bout had even started.

Had Pyrrha shared that opinion with one of the other people spectating that particular match, and had she not been the current champion, she likely would have been called crazy; after all, the man's opponent was a kid, only a year older than she was. Dark of skin, black of hair, and green of eye. And despite the varying strength of Auras and an endless possibility of Semblances making physical appearance a semi-reliable judge at best, he looked like he'd fit right in with a high school boxing club, though he wouldn't quite be in the heavyweight division. He'd certainly fit in at Sanctum though, possessing a sturdy yet lithe build beneath a blue bolero jacket and green shirt. More interesting, however, was the layer of belts between the two, which, along with the belts over his black pants, crisscrossed his entire body and were attached to both a fan at the small of his back and a pair of boxy sheaths at his thighs. And the weapons that went in the sheaths were a pair of katar/pistols, currently held low, as was his entire body, resembling a predator poised to pounce.

One might have assumed that Pyrrha drew her conclusion simply from their current postures and positioning within the ring; Pyrrha would have simply pointed out the confident smirk on the younger competitor's visage. And when asked what could possibly have the boy smirking, she'd reply that he was aware of and completely able to deal with his opponent's full capabilities.

It was his own fault, Pyrrha mused as the katar wielder initiated the exchange. Except to call it an exchange would imply that both parties had lost something. The teenager had dashed forward, right hand pulled back and left shoulder ducked just far enough forward to telegraph a leaping thrust.

The veteran took the bait, taking half a step back and spinning to aim a vicious backhanded swing at where boy's ribs would be at the apex of his leap, even as he raised his shield to deflect the thrust to the side should he miss.

It never came. In an impressive display of control, the teenager had initiated the lunge, but managed to come to a full stop before his feet left the ground, allowing the flail to pass just in front of his nose. Momentum unimpeded, and wholly unexpected, the older man was pulled just slightly off balance for the briefest of instants... But at such level of competition, that instant was more than enough to decide the fight. As soon as the flail passed, the katar wielder had stepped forward and performed a backflip, catching the bottom of his opponent's shield on the way up and pulling it out of position. And considering it was heavy compared to the teenager's entire loadout, and the chain mace was completely useless as a defensive implement? He was wide open for the spinning snap kick which caught him in the solar plexus and propelled him straight out of the ring.

The teenager adopted a faux-surprised expression, complete with hand hovering over his mouth.

Was she wrong to let out such a delighted laugh?

"And the winner is Caerulean Enfield, defeating Onyx Hughes to move on to the quarterfinals!"

No, Pyrrha decided, she most definitely would not feel guilty for cheering the results of this match. While she supposed the defeated flailman must have currently been experiencing humiliation at the flashy manner of his defeat, there was no denying that it had been a fairly decent display of showmanship. Which, at the end of the day, was what the audience cared about, which meant that the competitors had to care about it, at least to an extent; the audience wouldn't care for a boring show, and if the audiences (and sponsors) didn't pay, then the organizers wouldn't offer as lucrative a prize, which meant not quite as many fighters would be driven to seek it. Which would have been a real shame to Pyrrha, for while the prize money was nice, it was the competition itself that she felt was worth living for.

To that end, she'd make sure to keep an eye open for Caerulean Enfield in Mistral this summer.

* * *

 ** _Anybody who can tell me what character I stole that move from gets to name an OC for the tournament! (HINT: The character is from one of KOEI's Warriors games)_**


	31. Chapter 25: Contest Part 1

**Volume 1**

 **Chapter 25**

 **Contest**

 **Part 1**

* * *

 **M:+9 D:+7**

It was a rare occasion that Lee didn't open his eyes immediately upon waking, but this morning was one of those exceptions, given how unusually comfortable he was feeling. He felt like he was sunken a little further into his mattress than usual, and the pillow his arms were wrapped around felt much firmer and warmer than usual, but unusually smooth and cream-like.

"Ah..." Lee sighed, content to simply bask in the warm comfort, at least for the moment. He knew he'd have to get up sooner rather than later, but

 _Wait a minute. Pillows aren't supposed to feel like that?_

Refusing to open his eyes just yet, Lee willed one of his hands to trace over the suspect object, quickly confirming that, no, it was _not_ a pillow that he was currently cuddling. It was a person.

That wasn't the problem. The problem was that it was the _wrong_ person. He didn't need to open his eyes to see that, either; he was pretty used to waking up next to Emerald by this point, but the body sprawled atop him was both far too small and too fully clothed to be his not-girlfriend, which left only one possible option: Neo. Even if he hadn't just deduced that, and even if he hadn't opened his eyes and been confronted with three different colors of hair, he would have recognized her voice when she let out a distressed, dissatisfied little groan.

Lee was caught off guard by the cuteness of it, causing him to once again wrap his arms, which he had allowed to fall to the sides amidst his confusion, back around Neo's lower back and waist, causing her to let out a more contented sigh.

Lee gave an exasperated huff in return. "I just can't seem to say no to you, can I?"

And oh how he needed to; despite the ongoing ease with which Lee and Neo could relax completely around one another, that didn't change the fact that ever since the incident a couple months back, he'd been having... Thoughts of an inappropriate nature concerning his _fun-sized_ companion, thanks to the time she'd ended up pinned between him and the wall. With guilty pleasure, he could still remember the way her pale skin had tinged pink, looking up at him with a breathless expression... Her current proximity made it impossible to neglect the way she felt and smelled, the strawberry scent of her shampoo mixing with her own natural, feminine scent. But of course, with all of that going through his mind, and no opportunity to conceal the resulting reaction?

Considering that Neo was currently straddling him, Lee was about 1000% sure she knew where his thoughts had just trailed.

"And don't you forget it..." Neo replied with a verbal giggle, making absolutely no move at all. "How'd you sleep?"

Lee smiled, grateful that the girl was willing to ignore it and proceed as normal for the two, even if the definition of normal between them was currently difficult to define. Truthfully, he answered: "Great, actually. Probably because you're here."

Of course, the subtext wasn't helping their case; Lee could _feel_ Neo's face heating up against his chest... But to her credit, she didn't fluster, and simply snuggled tighter. He was, however, just the teensiest bit surprised and froze when she let out a pleasured moan.

 _What the chup?_

"Nooo! Please don't stop! That felt so good..."

It took him a moment, but Lee couldn't help but chuckle when he figured it out; perhaps it had been a subconscious reflex, but, apparently, he had been kneading the flesh of her back, and Neo hadn't appreciated him stopping. Now that he was aware of what he'd been doing, the rational part of his brain screamed that he needed to stop...

Maybe it was his aforementioned inability to tell Neo no, or perhaps it was just his hormones currently overpowering the more rational parts of his brain. Either way, the result was the same; Lee decided to continue the massage, instantly being met with a happy hum. Except this time, rather than just letting his hands wander, he shifted his grip so that his right hand was on her upper back, while his opposite hand was on her waist.

 _"What are you_ mmm..."

Lee smirked at Neo's moan, even as the part of his brain that contained his survival instincts begged him to stop. Ignoring it, he continued to knead his fingers into Neo's flesh, smoothing out the, admittedly, small knots in her muscles. But for someone like Neo, who was highly flexible and was almost religious about stretching properly before any sort of physical activity, and thus never had enough of them to warrant a massage?

Neo's moaning couldn't be called anything other than erotic.

"How're you doing, Short Stack? Enjoying cloud nine?"

 _Don't call me that._ Was the automatic response deadpanned directly into Lee's thoughts. Aloud, however, the only sound she was capable of producing was another moan.

"Yeah, that's what I thought... Short Stack."

Of course, Lee's smug tone caused Neo to slightly raise herself off of him so she could level him with a flat gaze... Of course, the effect was ruined by the way her lips were slightly parted, eyes hooded, and skin flushed.

The rational part of Lee was panicking silently; the devil within was gleeful upon seeing that Neo was in a similar mood. His own expression was playful, and made no secret of the underlying desire...

Sudden pressure at his ribs had him laughing for all of two seconds before a loud clap filled the room, followed up by a yelp from Neo. "Bad girl."

Of course, Neo wouldn't be Neo if she'd left it at that, so it wasn't too much of a surprise when she glared at him, nor when her features contorted into her own signature, playful smirk... Lee may not have been the most experienced in his previous life, but he'd been in this position enough to realize what was probably about to happen. As Neo's face plunged towards his chest, the rational part of him finally drew the line, and reclaimed control; Lee's hands gripped her waist and squeezed. In hindsight, however, Lee's rational side decided it probably would have been better to just let her bite him; Neo, at least, didn't bite as hard as Emerald did ( _yes,_ Lee had been bitten by Neo on a few different occasions... don't ask), and _he_ most certainly wouldn't have thrown his head back and screamed loud enough to wake the whole damn neighborhood!

Still, despite knowing that the inevitable explanation to Emerald was going to be anything but fun, the rational part of himself had once again lost control, overpowered in a team effort by the part that was equal parts smug and amused by the apparent intensity of the the orgasm that Neo had just experienced. But when Neo shifted to stare at him, eyes wide in wonder, he could not deny that a similar expression had come over his own features, able to focus on only one word:

 _Want..._

It must have shown, as Neo's expression suddenly seemed to become nervous, if the way she was chewing at her lip was any indication; Lee, worried that he had frightened her, did his best to take some of the edge off his own visage, and mentally cheered when she seemed to become contemplative instead. Lee watched as her eyes roamed over his features, and then glanced sideways towards the door. Lee, for his part, did the same, before looking back to meet his partner's questioning gaze.

Lee's own turned contemplative, for on the one hand, the one word Lee's mind associated the most with Neo, was 'partner.' And as far as Lee was concerned, partners were meant to share in one another's work, and thus contribute to one another's success. And success meant happiness, which was certainly something that he experienced on a regular basis in her company. On the other hand, Lee was very afraid of ruining said partnership, especially when the moment they were now sharing seemed to be fueled mainly by lust. The last thing he wanted to do was alienate the best friend he'd ever had by giving in to something they might later come to regret; he loved her far too much to do that to her.

 _Holy shtak... I really mean that, don't I?_

Lee closed his eyes, smiling as his mind supplied a montage of memories based around himself and Neo, from moonlit conversations in the wee hours of the morning, to silly quarrels over things such as petty ice cream theft, and, as Lee opened his eyes to glance at a photo on his nightstand, all the way to laughter shared over cold clocked mooks.

Green/blue locked onto brown/pink, and his hand rose to gently caress her cheek, causing her to smile and nuzzle into it. It went unsaid, but after nine months, they could read each other well enough that he may as well have been telepathic as well:

 _Yeah, I really do. I love Neo._

It really was too bad that he was about to end the moment... But when he considered the situation, he knew it was the right move; in addition to worrying about the context of the situation, there was also a third party to consider: Emerald.

 _Now, I feel like I need to reiterate: Emerald and I were not romantically involved. We may have been going through most of the motions, but we had discussed our relationship in depth about a week after the last incident with Neo, and come to the honest conclusion that, while we were definitely better friends than we had been before beginning our relationship, there simply wasn't anything resembling love in the equation. And it wasn't like neither of us had ever experienced it before; Emerald had much stronger feelings towards Cinder than she did towards myself (or any of our other companions, for that matter), and I was twenty-three years old; I'd experienced love a couple of times. It had been a hard conversation, fraught with acerbity and bitterness, but by the end of it, we'd agreed to keep going as we had been; after all, we were still young adults with needs. We weren't about to let a lack of romance stand in the way of fulfilling those needs. All of those needs, moving forward... In light of that, I wasn't about to start something with Neo, not without officially ending things with Emerald._

 _But, that wasn't the only item on the day's docket. As I mentioned during our last session, I was participating in the Mistral Regional Tournament. Or at least, I aimed to; it wouldn't be until the end of the day that I would find out whether or not I would actually be allowed to, after I fought my quarterfinal bout in the Kuchinashi qualifier. And one should already know that the top four competitors in each of the qualifier tournaments were granted a slot in the Regional. Thus, it could be reasoned that the quarterfinal round was actually more important than the final; I certainly intended to treat it as such. My bout wouldn't be fought until late in the afternoon, but I wasn't about to let that stop me from spending the day preparing..._

* * *

 _ **So... That happened. I originally started writing this scene with the intent of ship teasing... But then I sort of realized that I already introduced some sexual tension between Lee and Neo last 'episode,' and neither of them are the type to let that go unresolved for another 2 years and change... No way was that going to wait until Beacon, and I was stupid to try. Oh well.**_

 _ **One detail that I'm retconning: I had Pyrrha imply that the Regional Tournament is held during the winter. That was a mistake. I meant to say it occurs during the summer, but made the mistake of posting that chapter before editing; I was sleep deprived at the time. My bad. I'll go back and clean that chapter up before I post the next one.**_

 _ **Also, I decided not to do a second (er... fourth) interlude, primarily because I realized that the one I planned on writing needs to happen a little later in the story for... Reasons. Hehe.**_

 _ **Anyway, that's all from me for now. Remember, reviews are love, reviews are life!**_

 _ **-CeruleanSorbeltz**_


	32. Chapter 26: Contest Part 2

**Volume 1**

 **Chapter 26**

 **Contest**

 **Part 2**

* * *

"So, you ready to kick some ass today?"

Lee paused in the middle of a bench press and turned his head to the side, all the better to allow the speaker, Mercury, to see him raise an eyebrow in amusement. "Are you okay?"

The ashen haired teen paused in the middle of a pushup, and raised an equally amused brow. "Why do you ask?"

Lee continued with his bench press. "Oh, no reason," came the response, his tone nonchalant. "Just never thought I'd live to see the day you admit to having faith in my combat abilities."

"Well, it's not like you're capable of kicking _my_ ass. But you do at least make for a good warm up, so I'm sure you're more than a match for most other people."

Much to Lee's frustration, this was 100% true; despite having reached the point where he could consistently defeat Emerald, she could still occasionally get the better of him. What made it even more frustrating, however, was that _Neo_ could beat Mercury, about 8 or 9 times out of 10, while she only had fifty-fifty odds against Lee. So why was it that Lee was more or less a match for Neo, but couldn't beat Mercury? Well, quite simply put, it all came down to the fact that Mercury, despite being slower and less elusive than Neo, could both take and dish hits better than Neo could. In fact, the only two reasons Lee could actually beat Neo were because not only was a single solid hit (or occasionally, 2) enough to put her in the red, but she also didn't hit hard enough to do much damage to him, having the largest Aura in the group after Cinder as well as the sturdiest frame. Neo could literally land a couple dozen clean hits on him, and then promptly lose because Lee managed to land exactly one. It was a very convenient advantage.

He didn't have such an advantage against Mercury. As mentioned, Mercury was both stronger and more durable than Neo. But what truly made him an impossible opponent for Lee was that, despite Mercury being noticeably slower and less skilled than Neo, he still had the edge in both categories over Lee, especially when it came to defensive techniques, which essentially negated the advantage Lee held in raw strength. Lee had lost count of the number of times he'd watched Mercury turn a perfectly placed attack into a glancing blow, or reverse it into a throw or submission hold. The only thing that prevented the situation from driving Lee mad was that he was relatively certain that if they were both allowed to go all out, and if they weren't fighting in a confined space, he would be able to utilize Cloudburst's grappling lines to use a hit and run strategy. Additionally, he'd be able to use Dust for some elemental offense, which Mercury had limited defenses against... But because of what had happened the one time he'd attempted to use fire to fight Neo, it had been decided by Cinder that Lee was not allowed to use Dust indoors. So, frustrated with the state of affairs, and unable to achieve more favorable conditions, Lee resorted to pointing out the only advantage he had:

"Well, at least I'm better looking than you!"

"Does that mean you're going to rock that nurse's outfit in public then?"

Lee pouted in shame, even as the weight he was benching let out a guffaw and began to quiver. "I'm never going to live that one down, am I?" That pout quickly became a frown, as the weight began to quiver even harder. "If you keep that up, I _will_ end up dropping you, and that won't be fun."

Another chuckle escaped it, even as a frustrated Lee grumbled curses not-quite under his breath. Still, a couple seconds of glowing green/blue orbs later and Lee had adjusted, keeping the weight from dropping onto his chest... But just barely, in turn causing the weight balanced on Mercury's back to comment:

"Nice save!"

Lee responded with a sideways grin, recognizing the chance to shift the heat to someone else: "Thanks for noticing, Short Stack. By the way, impressive form."

Predictably, Neo frowned at the hated nickname, but it quickly became a pleased smile as she returned to her yoga. Currently, she was in the Natarajasana pose, navel and thigh creating a perfect 'T' shape… Until she proceeded to arch her back and move her right hand, previously extended forward, to join her left in pulling her ankle even closer to her shoulder blades, creating what Lee would have described as more of a 'Y' now, except that he knew that the 'Y' most fonts used would be too angular, and thus a _criminal_ misrepresentation of the 'U' shape she'd contorted herself into. Lee couldn't help but to pause once more in order to appreciate the near-perfect curve, broken only by the by the bump of her glutes…

Neo winked, and Lee felt himself flush, even as he silently cursed Neo for taking a point in their game... Though, he wasn't quite sure it could still be called a game after the events of earlier. He decided it was best not to think about that just then, however, lest-

"Enjoying the view?"

 _Shit._ Lee thought, even as he turned a slightly more casual gaze to his barbell. Or perhaps bar- _belle_ would be more appropriate, considering it was actually Emerald performing a sideways plank. It was a view that Lee was accustomed to, but that didn't prevent him from enjoying it all the same. Normally, he would have pretended to miss the accusatory tone in Emerald's voice and responded that yes, he did in fact enjoy the view, punctuated with a wink and a trailing glance over her 'assets.' However… _something_ was telling him that wouldn't work this time. Probably the combination of Neo's flirty wink and the events of earlier that morning (again, Lee found himself wondering if he'd have been better off just letting her bite him). So instead, Lee went with the first sarcastic comment that came to mind: "Aren't you?" Lee may have been ogling Neo for a moment, but he didn't need to be looking to know that Emerald hadn't wasted the chance to admire the object of her own desire, and he wasn't referring to himself.

Emerald heaved a frustrated sigh, and Lee could see her mouth beginning to form words. Mercury, equally exasperated, beat her to it: "Neo, if you could refrain from attempting to seduce Lee while using me as a perch, that would be great. Or at the very least wait until I can appreciate the view as well…"

Predictably, Neo ended her pose… But only so that she could perform a quick flip, landing in a handstand. Lee winced; Neo may have only weighed about ninety pounds (at the very most), but he doubted Mercury appreciated that suddenly digging into the space between his shoulder blades. "I'm sure I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Teenagers…" came the amused grumble from the gym's fifth occupant, crouched and peddling over a bicycle machine, causing the other four to adopt sheepish expressions (with a certain mint haired thief even flushing). Still, they all knew that Cinder wasn't annoyed, not truly. In fact, Lee would go so far as to say that Cinder found the scene endearing, almost as if she was a big sister watching her younger siblings with pride…

Forgetting that Lee was actually about the same age as Cinder, younger physical body due to as-of-yet-unexplained quantum bullshtak aside, he didn't dare voice that sentiment aloud. He may have earned a chuckle or three from his companions, but Cinder herself would scoff at the notion, true though it might be, and her mood would drop a couple of points, which was a bad idea considering that she was currently in a decent one. Were she in a really good mood, Lee would have chanced it, and were she in a bad one, he would have voiced it in an attempt to distract her from whatever was causing it, but were he to make such a comment now, he'd only succeed in making her scowl, so he refrained.

 _Better to just focus on being ready for the tournament,_ Lee thought as he closed his eyes and returned to benching Emerald. _I won't win if I'm worrying about anything else_.

Several minutes later, all five were back into their normal exercise rhythms (Lee now curling a pair of small dumbbells), going along at a comfortable pace: just enough to break a sweat, but not enough to really tire themselves out. For starters, it was barely noon, and add that Lee was fighting a tournament bout later, it would be a bad idea to go for a more intensive work out session; he didn't want to go into the fight sore and aching. No, the purpose of their current session was simply to keep in shape, unlike the torturous sessions he'd gone through during the beginning of his association with this group.

"You have really come far, haven't you, Caerulean?"

Lee paused, turning a questioning stare on Cinder. "Ma'am?"

The woman's smile turned uncharacteristically warm; in fact, Lee thought with no small amount of surprise, he'd go so far as to say that her expression was one of _pride._ "You've transformed from a barely competent civilian into a potential contender for the Mistral Region Championship, all in less than a year. It truly is impressive, Lee."

 _Holy shtak, she's actually expressing pride in me!.. Weird..._

* * *

 _That was a big deal; I know that I've already mentioned Cinder having a positive opinion of my combat prowess before, during the planning of the Summer Rose mission, but even then I knew she only did so in order to boost my self-confidence, with the goal being to make sure I'd perform to the full extent of my abilities. I did not and still do not doubt that her praise on that occasion was entirely sincere… But the fact remained that it was not exactly freely given. I suppose that you could argue that this situation was much the same... But you've gotta remember that my competing in the MRCT wasn't exactly a part of Cinder's plans. So for Cinder to just say something like that out of the blue, with nothing to be gained by doing so... Well, it certainly made my "Big Sister Cinder" image seem just a little more appropriate. Had I thought of it at the time, I almost certainly would have quipped such; however, the shock of this phenomenon was rather potent, and thus, my wits failed me…_

* * *

"I, ahahaha…" Lee chuckled awkwardly, embarrassed, eyes closed, and hand rubbing the back of his head while he grinned like an idiot. "Thanks?" Lee didn't even need to look to see that all four of his friends were amused by his reaction to the compliment. Once upon a time, he would have stammered for a good few moments while his brain attempted to catch up to his mouth, but his Semblance was a wonderful thing, so after only a brief moment of his eyes glowing, he managed to compose himself and give an appropriate response. "I mean, _thank you,_ Cinder. But it wouldn't be fair to give me all the credit; I've had the finest teachers possible, after all."

Cinder acknowledged the counter-praise with a gracious nod. "That is certainly true. But without your own astounding capacity to learn, our lessons would not have been as effective."

"I suppose. Thanks, I guess..."

The ensuing pause could only be described as awkward, with Lee unsure of how else to respond, and Cinder content to watch him squirm, if he was reading her semi-smirk correctly. He decided that he'd just accept the praise for what it seemed to be, and if Cinder wanted to ask him for something, well, it'd be on her to keep the conversation going.

Cinder didn't, so Lee just shrugged and turned back to his weights, intent upon getting back to his routine. At least until he looked at the clock.

"1 o'clock already? Looks like I'd better get ready to go!" As did Neo, both of them getting up to leave the gym and get dressed in their combat gear, while Cinder, Emerald, and Mercury remained; Cinder had other plans that day, plans that required an entourage... But that's a story for a different day. Suffice it to say that it was the type of mission that had Mercury smirking in anticipation, and Neo probably would have been the better choice for the third party member for the same reason. But instead of accompanying Cinder, she chose to watch Lee's fight, leaving Emerald to scowl at the imp as she followed Lee out the door...

* * *

 ** _I am soooo sorry this took me so long. I actually had 99% of this done for the last... month and a half or so. It just sort of felt 'meh' to me, and no amount of editing was changing that... Until today, that is. My other problem was that I was trying to stick to my currently established format of doing these 'episodes' in four parts... but I think this one is gonna have to be a 5 parter. Anyway, this chapter is done, and I am moving on to the next one! Hopefully I won't keep you guys waiting as long this time._**

 ** _-CS_**


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